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10:46, July 09, 2007 |
LOME: A Chinese company executive kidnapped in Niger's north region of Agadez on Friday is now in the hands of Tuareg tribes and his life is not under threat, the Chinese embassy in Niger said on Saturday.
The hostage, identified as Zhang Guohua, was a deputy general manager of the Societe Des Mines D'Agelik, a uranium prospecting company floated in Niger by the China Nuclear Engineering & Construction (Group) Corporation.
Zhang was taken hostage in the region of Agadez, some 1,000 km north of the capital city Niamey, at about 3:40 pm local time (1440 GMT) on Friday. His local driver, interpreter and bodyguard were spared, the embassy said.
A Nigerien rebel group, named the Movement of Niger People for Justice (MNJ), claimed responsibility for the kidnapping in a statement on Saturday.
It said that the kidnapping was in response to the company's policy of employing people from the capital rather than locals, according to the Chinese embassy.
The embassy said it had not been contacted by the group, but it vowed to spare no effort to secure the hostage's release.
The Nigerien government condemned the act in an official statement on Friday, saying it would take all necessary actions to secure the Chinese citizen's release.
Security in northern Niger has become a focal point since the same group attacked a military camp in the Agadez region last month, killing 13 soldiers, wounding more than 30 others and taking 40 people hostage.
In April, the group attacked the largest uranium project of Areva, a French nuclear energy heavyweight.
Niger, the world's third biggest uranium producer, accounts for 9 percent of the world's uranium output.
China has reached agreements with the Nigerien government on cooperation in uranium mining.
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