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Palestinian Militants Abduct Activists
37 minutes ago
NABLUS, West Bank - Palestinian gunmen abducted three foreign church volunteers, including an American, in Nablus late Friday, Palestinian security officials said.
Five gunmen seized the foreigners as they were returning to the home where they were staying around midnight, the officials said.
The volunteers were citizens of the United States, Britian and Ireland, the officials said. Their identities were not released. Several foreign women accompanying them were allowed to go free.
The officials said the hostages apparently were taken to the Balata refugee camp near Nablus. No reason for the abduction was immediately given.
The Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, which is affiliated with Yasser Arafat (news - web sites)'s Fatah (news - web sites) movement, said the kidnappers could belong to a splinter group of Al Aqsa. He said the group was helping authorities in the search for the hostages.
Qaeda-Linked Group Gives Italy 15 Days to Leave Iraq
2 hours, 31 minutes ago
DUBAI (Reuters) - A militant group claiming links to al Qaeda has given Italy a 15-day deadline to withdraw its troops from Iraq (news - web sites) or face attacks, in a statement sent to the London-based al-Quds al-Arabi newspaper Sunday.
"We are mobilizing our cells everywhere in Rome and other Italian cities and we give (Italian Prime Minister Silvio) Berlusconi 15 days to withdraw from Iraq, said the statement signed by Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades -- al Qaeda Organization.
"After that we will not be responsible for any loss of lives," said the statement, made available to Reuters ahead of publication. Its authenticity could not be immediately verified.
"We had already sent you an earlier message asking you to withdraw from Iraq as soon as possible but have not seen anything yet ... and this is why the language of blood is on its way to you," the Arabic-language statement, which was addressed to Berlusconi's government and dated July 31, added.
The group has previously issued threats against European countries, saying it would start with Italy, for not responding to a three-month "truce" issued to European states by al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden (news - web sites) which expired in July.
U.S. officials have said Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades links with al Qaeda are unclear.
