Somalia: Four Kenyans abducted in Mogadishu: Official

By James Shimanyula

Nairobi, 24 Feb 2014 (SDN) – Four Kenyans working for two construction companies in Somalia have been abducted near capital Mogadishu and ransoms have been demanded, Kenyan authorities confirmed on Sunday.

“The pirates are demanding a $100 million ransom before freeing the Kenyans,” Andrew Mwangura, Secretary-General of the Seafarers Union of Kenya, told Anadolu Agency on Sunday.

The four Kenyan nationals were working for two construction companies in Mogadishu.

“Two of the Kenyans were kidnapped as they constructed a petrol station in Mogadishu while the other two were renovating Mogadishu’s International Airport,” Mwangura said.

He suggested the Kenyans were waylaid by the abductors while on their way to their residential areas two kilometers south of Mogadishu.

According to Mwangura, the Kenyans were abducted two weeks ago but news of their disappearance only reached the authorities today.

“They are still in captivity. We believe the Kenyans are now held at a secret location 700 kilometers north of Mogadishu,” he added.

Asked why assuming the abductors were pirates, the Kenyan official said gangsters rarely ask for such huge ransoms.

“Copy of contents of their demands in our possession points to the fact that they are pirates,” he added.

Mwangura suggested that pirates now roam the streets of Mogadishu and its outskirts, adding abductions to the list of their crimes.

Traditionally Somali pirates operate on small boats and pirate ships in the Indian Ocean waters.

But according to Mwangura, of late workers of international construction companies have fallen prey to the pirates who abandon their ships and enter Mogadishu where they roam undetected.

Source: Turkishpress