Gunmen abduct 3 aid workers in Somalia

Gunmen on Tuesday kidnapped an American, a Dane and a Somali working for the Danish Demining Group in central Somalia, the latest abductions by armed gangs in the war-torn nation. "Three staff members from the Danish Demining Group have been kidnapped," said Klaus Ljoerring Pedersen, the group's regional chief. "One is a Somali man, two are international staff members, an American woman and a Danish man," Pederson said, adding that investigations were ongoing. The three were abducted in Galkayo, where the group has been present since 2007. Local security officer Ali Mohamed said the aid workers were kidnapped from near the airport at Galkayo. In Copenhagen, Danish Foreign Minister Villy Soevndal said that the government was following the situation minute by minute, "but we do not negotiate with people who take hostages." DDG clears landmines and other unexploded ordnance in the area to open up the use of land, and also provides mine risk education to reduce injuries. Galkayo, which straddles the border between Puntland and the self-proclaimed separate region of Galmudug in central Somalia, saw heavy fighting last month between rival political or clan groups. "We have sent security forces to block all routes to stop them," Galmadug deputy security minister Ahmed Mahmud told reporters. However, he added that the gunmen were reported to be heading east towards the anarchic Hobyo district, a region notorious for pirate gangs. "We remain concerned about the individual's safety and well-being and are working with contacts in Kenya and Somalia to ascertain more information," a US State Department official said in Washington. Somalia is one of the world's most dangerous regions for aid workers, several of whom have been kidnapped in the past by ransom-seeking militia groups. It is also home to a number of pirate gangs who earn a living by seizing boats, but who have recently been accused of capturing hostages on land as well. A lack of effective central government since Somalia plunged into civil war two decades ago has allowed a flourishing of militias, Islamist insurgencies and pirate gangs ruling mini-fiefdoms. Both Galmudug and Puntland signed a nation-building roadmap last month with the weak Western-backed government in Mogadishu and oppose the Islamist Shebab insurgents who control Somali regions further south. Four European women have been abducted in recent weeks from Kenya by gunmen who later fled to Somalia. Kenya sent troops and tanks into southern Somalia last week to fight the Shebab, whom it blames for the spate of kidnappings of foreigners, but the rebels have denied being behind the seizures. The hardline insurgents have vowed to retaliate against the attacks, and Kenyan police say they suspect two grenade attacks Monday in Nairobi could be linked to Shebab operatives. Two Spanish aid workers were seized in Kenya's eastern Dadaab camp earlier this month and are believed to have been taken across the border into Somalia. A British tourist was kidnapped from Kenya's coastal areas last month, followed shortly afterward by a Frenchwoman, who later died in captivity. Kenyan Foreign Minister Moses Wetang'ula repeated Tuesday his country's determination to protect its borders through its military assault in Somalia. "Kenya cannot watch unwarranted kidnaps of its tourists (and) aid workers and violation of territorial integrity," he said in a statement.