Iran Calls for Diplomat’s Release

Anniversary of Being Kidnapped in Yemen

Iranian deputy foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian today called on Yemeni authorities to help secure the release of an Iranian diplomat abducted in Sana'a last year. Nour Ahmad Nikbakht was kidnapped near the embassy on his way to work by unidentified gunmen on 21 July 2013.

Yemeni officials released intelligence reports in May showing Nikbakht was alive.

File photo: A Yemeni soldier stands guard in front of the Iranian Embassy in Sana’a. (IRNA/Press TV)

48 Iranian Pilgrims Kidnapped in Damascus

In a brazen daylight kidnapping, gunmen snatched a bus filled with 48 Iranian pilgrims from a Damascus suburb Saturday as they headed to visit Hazrat Zeinab shrine, Iran’s al-Alam TV network reported.

The pilgrims had just left their hotel and were headed by bus to the Hazrat Zeinab mosque. Zeinab is the granddaughter of Prophet Mohammad and the sister of Shia’s Martyr Imam Hossein. The Shiites believe her tomb is within the mosque situated in a suburb south of Damascus, which has become one of the holiest Shiite sites. 

Five Iranians Kidnaped in Homs, Syria

The Iranian embassy in Damascus announced today that five Iranians have been kidnapped in the Syrian city of Homs, the epicenter of the uprising in the country. The embassy has demanded their immediate release.

“The five were kidnapped on Wednesday at 0630 a.m. while heading to their work place .We demand their immediate release,” said the statement issued by the embassy in Damascus [Mehr News Agency, 21 December].

Syria’s state news agency SANA earlier today had identified the kidnapped Iranian as engineers who along with three other foreign technicians disappeared while heading to their work at a power plant in Homs province.

Iran is the closest regional ally of the faltering Syrian government. It was not clear, however, if the relations between the two countries were a factor in today's kidnappings.