Four Egyptians kidnapped in Baghdad

Four Egyptians working for a mobile phone company were kidnapped today by gunmen in Baghdad, an Interior Ministry official said.

The official said the four were seized early today near the Mansour district of western Baghdad.

They worked for Iraqna, a subsidiary of the Egyptian firm Orascom Telecommunications, which operates the mobile phone network in Baghdad and central Iraq.

Six other Egyptians working for Iraqna were kidnapped in two separate incidents in September.

Four were freed quickly and the last two were released in October. At the time they were seized, Orascom said it was committed to continuing its work in Iraq.