Swiss Couple Kidnapped in Pakistan
A Swiss couple was kidnapped Friday while traveling in southwestern Pakistan, a senior government official said, triggering a police search.
The pair was seized in a district 170 kilometers east of Quetta, the capital of sparsely populated Baluchistan province, provincial home secretary Zafarullah Baloch told Agence France Presse.
"We have received reports that two Swiss nationals have been kidnapped in Loralai district," he said.
"We have sent a team comprising police and an administration official to search (for) them."
Loralai's district police chief Ghulam Ali Lashari said officers had found the couple's Volkswagen vehicle abandoned in Killi Nigah area.
The couple arrived at Sirki Jungle checkpoint at about 5:45 pm (12:45 GMT) on Friday, registered as Swiss tourists and were allowed to enter an area controlled by tribal police, Lashari said.
"According to witnesses when they were travelling in Killi Nigah area some unknown gunmen intercepted the Swiss couple and took them away to an unknown place," he said.
Baloch and Lashari said the pair had entered Baluchistan from Dera Ghazi Khan District in Punjab province and might have been heading for Quetta.
No-one has yet claimed responsibility for the incident or contacted authorities about the kidnapped foreigners, he said.
The Swiss Foreign Ministry said it was "aware of the information about a possible kidnapping case in Pakistan."
It was in contact with local authorities but could not give further details, added the ministry.
It advised Swiss citizens against non-essential travel to Pakistan due to "different, high risks." Among these were a high risk of kidnapping as well as a threat of armed attacks in Baluchistan, Sindh and south Punjab, said the ministry.
Baluchistan, which borders Iran and Afghanistan, has seen an upswing in violence recently, with the province suffering from a separatist insurgency, sectarian violence and Taliban militants.
Hundreds of people have died since rebels rose up in 2004 demanding political autonomy and a greater share of profits from the region's natural oil, gas and mineral resources.
Source: Agence France Presse
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