Forty Indian construction workers were confirmed to have been abducted from the Iraq city of Mosul, but no ransom demands were received, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Wednesday.
‘It is with deep, deep sadness we to inform you that 40 workers of the Tariq Noor Al Huda construction company have been abducted,’ Syed Akbaruddin said.
The abducted people, he said, were largely from northern parts of India – ‘Punjab belt, etc’. ‘You can never be certain about exact information,’ he said on being asked about the exact location of the workers and their condition.
‘We will not spare any efforts to help the Indians in Iraq… International Red Crescent has confirmed that they have been kidnapped, but is unaware of their location. (There is) no answer on how they were kidnapped,’ Akbaruddin said.
‘India is sending back its former envoy... to strengthen the embassies in Iraq,’ he added. The foreign ministry spokesperson said they were not yet contacted by the abductors. ‘We have not received a call of any nature, asking for ransom or confirming that they (militants) have taken the workers under their control,’ he said.
According to an Indian government official there are about 120 Indians that the mission is trying to evacuate from those parts of northern Iraq that have been overrun by militants. Meanwhile, Iraq has asked the United States to conduct air strikes against jihadist-led Sunni militants who have seized key cities and large swathes of the country, foreign minister Hoshyar Zebari said on Wednesday.
‘It is with deep, deep sadness we to inform you that 40 workers of the Tariq Noor Al Huda construction company have been abducted,’ Syed Akbaruddin said.
The abducted people, he said, were largely from northern parts of India – ‘Punjab belt, etc’. ‘You can never be certain about exact information,’ he said on being asked about the exact location of the workers and their condition.
‘We will not spare any efforts to help the Indians in Iraq… International Red Crescent has confirmed that they have been kidnapped, but is unaware of their location. (There is) no answer on how they were kidnapped,’ Akbaruddin said.
‘India is sending back its former envoy... to strengthen the embassies in Iraq,’ he added. The foreign ministry spokesperson said they were not yet contacted by the abductors. ‘We have not received a call of any nature, asking for ransom or confirming that they (militants) have taken the workers under their control,’ he said.
According to an Indian government official there are about 120 Indians that the mission is trying to evacuate from those parts of northern Iraq that have been overrun by militants. Meanwhile, Iraq has asked the United States to conduct air strikes against jihadist-led Sunni militants who have seized key cities and large swathes of the country, foreign minister Hoshyar Zebari said on Wednesday.