Seven Chinese Kidnapped in Iraq, China Urges Rescue

[maddezmom]

By John Ruwitch
BEIJING (Reuters) - Gunmen kidnapped seven Chinese citizens in Iraq, the latest in a spate of hostage-taking, and Beijing appealed to Baghdad on Monday to rescue them.

Sunday's abductions threatened to overshadow a visit to China by Vice President Dick Cheney, a key force behind the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, which Beijing opposed. Cheney arrives in Beijing on Tuesday.

The seven Chinese men -- Xue Yougui, Lin Jinping, Li Guiwu, Li Guiping, Wei Weilong, Chen Xiaojin, and Lin Kongming -- entered Iraq from Jordan on Sunday morning and were abducted in Falluja, west of Baghdad, the official Xinhua news agency said.

It did not identify them further or say what they were doing in Iraq. Falluja lies on the main highway from Amman, the capital of Jordan, to Baghdad.

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http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=4801575§ion=news