Canadian taken hostage

2004-04-09 07:46

Tokyo - Japan vowed not to pull its troops out of Iraq on Friday as relatives of three Japanese hostages being held by gunmen tearfully pleaded for an immediate withdrawal.

"There is no reason to withdraw," the government's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda reiterated at a media conference, saying the three Japanese held in Iraq had gone to the war-ravaged country to help people there.

Fukuda said the government was striving to get precise information on the hostage-taking, while admitting Tokyo had not been able to contact the kidnappers yet.

Asked whether the government may change its position after getting such "precise information," Fukuda said: "We cannot say so easily we will pull out."

"Do you think it is okay to be swayed by terrorism and swallow their demands? It is not that simple," he told reporters.

Earlier Friday the government launched a special taskforce headed by Fukuda and including the foreign and justice ministers, the head of the Defence Agency and the head of the National Police Agency to handle the hostage crisis.

The Canadian foreign ministry reported that a Canadian man, working for a US humanitarian organisation, has also been taken hostage in Iraq.

The man, Fadi Ihsan Fadel, was working for the US-based International Rescue Committee when he was taken hostage, said foreign ministry spokesman Sameer Ahmed.

Fadel was earlier identified as an Israeli Arab, but it has since been established that he is a Canadian, Ahmed said.

"We are currently seeking further information on the situation and hope that his release will soon be secured," he added.

- AFP