5 Filipinos abducted by armed men in Libya, Iraq – DFA

MANILA, Philippines – Five Filipinos were recently abducted by armed men in Libya and Iraq, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed on Sunday, July 8, as it seeks help from Libyan and Iraqi authorities.

Two Filipinas were kidnapped in Iraq while 3 Filipino technicians were abducted in Libya in separate instances on Friday, July 6, said the DFA.

"We are in touch with authorities in Iraq and Libya and have requested their assistance in locating and securing the release of our missing kababayans (countrymen)," Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said.

Citing information from te Philippine embassy in Baghdad, the DFA said two Filipinas "were taken by still unidentified armed men along a highway in Uzem district, south of Kirkuk" in Iraq.

The women "were reportedly with two other Filipinas," who "were later able to escape."

In Libya, the 3 Filipino technicians "were among 4 foreign nationals taken by armed men from a waterworks project site also on Friday."