Russia anxious over reports of al-Qaeda involvement in abduction
20/06/2006 12:30 MOSCOW, June 20 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's foreign minister said Tuesday that reports of al-Qaeda's involvement in the kidnapping of four Russian embassy employees in the Iraqi capital June 3 were being studied "with all seriousness."
"We are verifying [this information] using all channels that we have opened to find the diplomats as quickly as possible," Sergei Lavrov told journalists.
A Web site often used by terrorists claimed earlier Monday that the Mujahideen Shura Council, a group linked to the Iraq wing of al-Qaeda, had kidnapped the embassy employees on June 3.
One Russian diplomat was killed and four others kidnapped when unidentified gunmen attacked a Russian embassy car in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, early June. The kidnappers have yet to make ransom or other demands for the hostages' freedom.
Lavrov again called for immediate release of the Russian diplomats, and urged the kidnappers to remember which country they represented.
"Russia has made all possible efforts to avoid the current situation in Iraq," he said, adding that victimizing Russian diplomats was unfair and ran counter to the interests of the Iraqi people.
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