Bulgarian envoy foils kidnap attempt
14 May 2012 3:49 AM GMT
Bulgaria's ambassador to Yemen escaped a kidnap attempt while he was driving through Sanaa in a diplomatic car, local and Bulgarian officials said on Sunday.
'Masked armed men stopped the car of the Bulgarian ambassador to kidnap him, but the diplomat managed to escape and hide in a nearby shop,' a security official said.
The attempt against Ambassador Boris Borisov and his wife took place yesterday on Algeria Street, a main thoroughfare in the Yemeni capital, at around 5 pm (local time), another official said.
In Sofia Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nikolay Mladenov confirmed the incident, adding that Borisov was injured in the fight.
'I am shocked and indignant at the kidnap attempt and violence against the Bulgarian ambassador in Sanaa, Boris Borisov,' Mladenov said in a statement.
According to the ministry, a pick-up truck intercepted and blocked the diplomatic car, driven by Borisov.
The four armed men in the truck first shot in the air and then smashed the front and driver's windscreen of the car.
'They tried to forcefully drag Borisov out of the car, hitting him on the face and arms. One of the attackers entered through the right-hand side door of the car and threatened ambassador Borisov with a knife,' Mladenov said.
'The rest continued to shoot and hit the car with their stocks of their guns, trying to facilitate the kidnapping.
'Masked armed men stopped the car of the Bulgarian ambassador to kidnap him, but the diplomat managed to escape and hide in a nearby shop,' a security official said.
The attempt against Ambassador Boris Borisov and his wife took place yesterday on Algeria Street, a main thoroughfare in the Yemeni capital, at around 5 pm (local time), another official said.
In Sofia Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nikolay Mladenov confirmed the incident, adding that Borisov was injured in the fight.
'I am shocked and indignant at the kidnap attempt and violence against the Bulgarian ambassador in Sanaa, Boris Borisov,' Mladenov said in a statement.
According to the ministry, a pick-up truck intercepted and blocked the diplomatic car, driven by Borisov.
The four armed men in the truck first shot in the air and then smashed the front and driver's windscreen of the car.
'They tried to forcefully drag Borisov out of the car, hitting him on the face and arms. One of the attackers entered through the right-hand side door of the car and threatened ambassador Borisov with a knife,' Mladenov said.
'The rest continued to shoot and hit the car with their stocks of their guns, trying to facilitate the kidnapping.
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