Kuwaiti firm bows to kidnappers' demands, stops work in Iraq

[Barrett808]

DUBAI (AFP) - The Kuwaiti firm which has seven truck drivers held hostage in Iraq (news - web sites) has decided to halt operations in the troubled country, bowing to the kidnappers' condition for their release, it said.

"The Kuwait Gulf and Link (KGL) has decided to halt activities in Iraq completely," KGL spokeswoman Rana Abu Zaineh told the Dubai-based al-Arabiya television station.

"We do not have at the moment any presence in Iraq," she added.

On Thursday, a group calling itself the Secret Islamic Army (SIA) said in a statement that it would free the seven hostages it has been holding for more than a month as soon as their company says it will no longer operate in Iraq.

The seven -- three Indians, three Kenyans and an Egyptian -- are all lorry drivers working for the Kuwaiti transport company. They were abducted on July 21 and threatened with execution if KGL did not end its work in Iraq.

In addition to the withdrawal of KGL from Iraq, the SIA also demanded the release of Iraqi prisoners held in Kuwait and in detention centres run by the United States.

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