Militants: We have 10 hostages

2004-09-30 15:06

Doha - An Islamist militant group in Iraq has announced it is holding 10 hostages, including two Indonesian women and two Lebanese nationals, Al-Jazeera television reported on Thursday, airing footage of four of the captives.

"An armed group calling itself "Islamic Army in Iraq - Western Region Command" has circulated a videotape in which it announced that it is holding 10 hostages," the news channel said.

The captives are two Indonesian women, six Iraqis and two Lebanese who work for an electrical equipment firm, it said.

Four of the presumed captives, all men, were shown in the footage, with the captors pointing machineguns at them.

Al-Jazeera said the kidnappers had not made any demands so far.

Many of the insurgents fighting United States-led forces who have taken foreigners hostage in Iraq in the past few months have demanded that their employers stop operating in the country. Ransoms were paid in some cases to secure the release of hostages.

The latest group to manifest itself appears to be an offshoot of the so-called "Islamic Army in Iraq," which has been holding two French journalists since August 20. The group initially demanded that France revoke a ban on Islamic headscarves in public schools.

- AFP