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| Iraqi official: 3 Americans missing in Baghdad kidnapped by gunmen | Iraqi official: 3 Americans missing in Baghdad kidnapped by gunmen |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| BAGHDAD — Three Americans reported missing from a Baghdad neighborhood were kidnapped by militiamen from an apartment in the capital on Saturday, a senior police official and resident of the building said. | BAGHDAD — Three Americans reported missing from a Baghdad neighborhood were kidnapped by militiamen from an apartment in the capital on Saturday, a senior police official and resident of the building said. |
| A Baghdad police colonel, speaking on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media, said that the Americans are employed as contractors at the Baghdad International Airport. He did not say which company employed the individuals. | A Baghdad police colonel, speaking on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media, said that the Americans are employed as contractors at the Baghdad International Airport. He did not say which company employed the individuals. |
| Another police official in Baghdad, a major general also speaking on condition of anonymity, gave the names of the abducted individuals as Amro Mohamed, Wael al-Mahdawi, and Rusul Farad, a woman. | Another police official in Baghdad, a major general also speaking on condition of anonymity, gave the names of the abducted individuals as Amro Mohamed, Wael al-Mahdawi, and Rusul Farad, a woman. |
| The Americans appear to have been seized by Shiite militiamen in the Dora neighborhood in southern Baghdad, the police colonel said. The area from which they were taken is controlled by Shiite militias, including the Iran-backed Asai'b Ahl al-Haqq, or League of the Righteous, he said. | |
| A resident of the apartment building where the Americans were reportedly seized said that they were taken from a second-story apartment that he described as well-known as a brothel. A police major general also said the apartment was a brothel. The resident said the apartment is subject to frequent raids by Asa’ib ah al-Haqq, although typically the men found inside are simply told to leave. | |
| Dora was a dangerous Sunni insurgent hub, and site of some of the worst sectarian cleansing in the capital in 2006-07. Some areas of Dora are now ruled by militias, residents and officials said. | Dora was a dangerous Sunni insurgent hub, and site of some of the worst sectarian cleansing in the capital in 2006-07. Some areas of Dora are now ruled by militias, residents and officials said. |
| “We are aware of reports that American citizens are missing in Iraq,” John Kirby, a State Department spokesman, said on Sunday. “The safety and security of American citizens overseas is our highest priority. We are working with the full cooperation of the Iraqi authorities to locate and recover the individuals. Due to privacy considerations, I have nothing further.” | “We are aware of reports that American citizens are missing in Iraq,” John Kirby, a State Department spokesman, said on Sunday. “The safety and security of American citizens overseas is our highest priority. We are working with the full cooperation of the Iraqi authorities to locate and recover the individuals. Due to privacy considerations, I have nothing further.” |
| Abductions for ransom or political reasons were widely practiced by militants and criminal gangs in Baghdad following the U.S. invasion here in 2003. But the rate of high-profile kidnappings had dropped off in recent years. | Abductions for ransom or political reasons were widely practiced by militants and criminal gangs in Baghdad following the U.S. invasion here in 2003. But the rate of high-profile kidnappings had dropped off in recent years. |
| A senior Iraqi security official also told CNN that the Americans had gone missing two days ago, along with their Iraqi interpreter. A spokesman for Baghdad’s Joint Operations Command said Sunday that the three missing persons were Iraqis who had become U.S. citizens. That information also could not be confirmed. Some local media reports, quoting unnamed security officials, said the individuals were taken from Baghdad’s Dora neighborhood on their way to the international airport. | A senior Iraqi security official also told CNN that the Americans had gone missing two days ago, along with their Iraqi interpreter. A spokesman for Baghdad’s Joint Operations Command said Sunday that the three missing persons were Iraqis who had become U.S. citizens. That information also could not be confirmed. Some local media reports, quoting unnamed security officials, said the individuals were taken from Baghdad’s Dora neighborhood on their way to the international airport. |
| [Plane with freed Americans leaves Iran; U.S. imposes new sanctions ] | [Plane with freed Americans leaves Iran; U.S. imposes new sanctions ] |
| Both Sunni and Shiite militants are present in the Iraqi capital, but Shiite militias operate as powerful auxiliary forces, and the Islamic State does not have a major presence here. | Both Sunni and Shiite militants are present in the Iraqi capital, but Shiite militias operate as powerful auxiliary forces, and the Islamic State does not have a major presence here. |
| Many of Iraq’s Shiite militias are backed by Iran. Some analysts who closely follow Iran and its regional proxies suggested Sunday that the abduction of American citizens in Baghdad, if true, may have been a projection of Iranian power, in particular by hard-liners who opposed the prisoner deal with the United States over the weekend. | Many of Iraq’s Shiite militias are backed by Iran. Some analysts who closely follow Iran and its regional proxies suggested Sunday that the abduction of American citizens in Baghdad, if true, may have been a projection of Iranian power, in particular by hard-liners who opposed the prisoner deal with the United States over the weekend. |
| Iran released four Iranian Americans with dual citizenship who were being held in Iranian prisons; the United States offered clemency to seven Iranians charged or imprisoned for sanctions violations. American authorities also dismissed charges against 14 Iranians outside the United States. | Iran released four Iranian Americans with dual citizenship who were being held in Iranian prisons; the United States offered clemency to seven Iranians charged or imprisoned for sanctions violations. American authorities also dismissed charges against 14 Iranians outside the United States. |
| Phillip Smyth, a researcher at the University of Maryland who is an expert on Shiite armed groups, posted an online link to an analysis of Iranian proxy forces he wrote about a year ago. In that paper, for the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Smyth wrote that armed groups loyal to Iran could soon change their focus from fighting jihadists such as the Islamic State to “possibly disrupting U.S. or regional allies’ interests in the Middle East and globally.” | Phillip Smyth, a researcher at the University of Maryland who is an expert on Shiite armed groups, posted an online link to an analysis of Iranian proxy forces he wrote about a year ago. In that paper, for the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Smyth wrote that armed groups loyal to Iran could soon change their focus from fighting jihadists such as the Islamic State to “possibly disrupting U.S. or regional allies’ interests in the Middle East and globally.” |
| The Islamic State has also abducted Westerners, including U.S. citizens, in Syria, where it also commands wide swaths of territory. The jihadists beheaded two Americans, James Foley and Steven Sotloff. A third American, aid worker Kayla Mueller, was also killed in what the Islamic State said was a coalition airstrike on one of their compounds in the Syrian city of Raqqa. | The Islamic State has also abducted Westerners, including U.S. citizens, in Syria, where it also commands wide swaths of territory. The jihadists beheaded two Americans, James Foley and Steven Sotloff. A third American, aid worker Kayla Mueller, was also killed in what the Islamic State said was a coalition airstrike on one of their compounds in the Syrian city of Raqqa. |
| Mustafa Salim contributed reporting. | Mustafa Salim contributed reporting. |