Three American contractors who were kidnapped by an armed group in southern Baghdad last month have been freed, two Iraqi security officials and a US official said Tuesday.
Advertisement
The three individuals went missing last month from a “suspicious apartment” from Dora, a Baghdad neighborhood housing members of the rival Shiite and Sunni communities. Militia leaders denied involvement in the days following the abduction, and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has downplayed any link to Iran.
IS also has ample motive to target Americans, but while it is able to carry out bombings in Baghdad, it does not have a major presence in the city.
It had been years since an American was kidnapped in Iraq.
“We are aware of reports that American citizens are missing in Iraq”, State Department spokesperson John Kirby had told Fox News in January.
They say the three are in good health and have been handed over to the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.
They had been working for a construction company in the Iraqi capital.
Advertisement
“Specifically, we express our gratitude to the Iraqi Security Forces, and in particular the Ministry of Defense and the Iraqi National Intelligence Service, for their role in achieving this outcome”, he added in a statement.
