Islamabad: A Swiss couple was abducted by
unidentified armed men in the restive Balochistan province of
southwest Pakistan, a senior police official has said.
"Unidentified gunmen intercepted the foreigners'
vehicle...and took them at gunpoint to an unknown
destination," said Ghulam Ali Lashari, the police chief of
Loralai district.
The Swiss nationals were abducted yesterday in Sirki
Jangle area of Loralai, over 250-km from provincial capital
Quetta.
Lashari identified them as Olivier David and his wife
W Omer.
The couple, who were travelling in a vehicle,
entered Loralai district at 5.45 pm and registered themselves
at a police check post as tourists from Switzerland.
They were kidnapped after they entered an area of
Loralai district controlled by the Levies militia, Lashari
told state-run APP news agency.
The Swiss couple came to Loralai from Dera Ghazi
Khan district of Punjab province. The couple's vehicle was
found abandoned near Killi Nigah in Loralai.
Law enforcement personnel cordoned off the area and
launched a search operation to trace the couple.
No group claimed responsibility for the kidnapping.
An American national working for the UN refugee
agency was kidnapped in Quetta in February 2009 and released
after two months of captivity.
PTI
First Published: Saturday, July 02, 2011, 14:02