The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) on Monday called for the release of two Western journalists and their local assistant after they were abducted on Saturday near the Somali capital, Mogadishu.
The media rights watchdog's statement comes as there has been no claim of responsibility for the abduction of Amanda Lindhout, a Canadian reporter freelancing for a French television and Canada's Global National News, and Nigel Brennan, a freelance Australian photojournalist.
"This shocking incident underscores the terrible dangers and threats that continue to face journalists in Somalia," said Gabriel Baglo, the director of the IFJ Africa office.
"We call for them to be set free immediately. The Somali authorities must act urgently to see our colleagues come to no harm."
According to IFJ's affiliate, the National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ), Lindhout and Brenan were abducted on Saturday as they travelled to Afgoye, situated 25 km from Mogadishu, to visit camps for displaced civilians.
The union said that no claim has yet been made and the kidnappers have not been identified, which has added to concerns.
"We are worried about their safety as we have had no contact with anybody saying they are holding the journalists and their driver," said Omar Faruk Osman, the secretary general of NUSOJ.
Over the past two years there have been a number of incidents of foreigners, especially humanitarian workers, being abducted forransom in Somalia and then released unharmed.
This latest case is the first involving media personnel since the abduction of French journalist Gwen Le Gouil who was detained eight days last December 2007 in the north of the country.
Abductions are common in Somalia where the insurgents have been battling President Abdullahi Yusuf's interim government and its Ethiopian military allies since the start of 2007.
Source:Xinhua
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