3 workers confirmed kidnapped in central Somalia

Suspected Somalia militants kidnapped three staff working for Danish Demining Group on Tuesday from a town in central Somalia where they were contracted to a landmine clearance programme, the group confirmed. The Danish Demining Group said in a statement that three aid workers, including an American woman, a Danish man and a Somali man, were kidnapped at 12: 00 GMT in the Horn of Africa nation. "Today, at 3 p.m. local time in Somalia, three staff members from the Danish Demining Group have been kidnapped. One is a Somali man, two are international staff members, an American woman and a Danish man," the group said in a statement posted on its website. The pair, a man and a woman, were reportedly abducted close to the airport in Galkayo, a town split between two different local authorities, where north of territory was controlled by al-Shabaab. A Somali colleague was seized with them. Several UN and aid agencies have offices in the Galakyo town, which enjoys relative peace compared to other regions in the south of Horn of African nation controlled mostly by Islamists. "The Danish Demining Group has no further comments at the moment, and is encouraging media to respect the need for confidentiality as investigations are ongoing," the group said. The Tuesday's abduction is the fourth incident involving foreigners by Somali insurgents in the last seven weeks, following kidnappings of British, French and Spanish women from northern Kenya.