Security officials reported today, Monday, that "two Kuwaiti citizens were kidnapped during a hunting trip in a desert area in Iraq yesterday, Sunday." They added that security forces have launched a widespread search for the two individuals. The officials indicated that initial investigations revealed that one of the hunters' vehicles was attacked by armed assailants, leading to a loss of communication with the two Kuwaitis. A senior police officer confirmed the kidnapping occurred in a desert area between the provinces of Anbar and Salah al-Din. One police officer told Reuters: "The two Kuwaiti hunters were moving in a vast desert area, which is extremely dangerous because the Islamic State organization is still active there. We want to first know if they are still alive." No group has immediately claimed responsibility for the incident. Hunters from wealthy Gulf countries often make trips to the southern and western deserts of Iraq in search of falcons.
However, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry indicated in a statement that only one Kuwaiti citizen was kidnapped. The statement mentioned that Iraqi Foreign Minister Fouad Hussein informed his Kuwaiti counterpart Sheikh Salem Abdullah Jaber Al-Sabah that the Iraqi government is keen to "know the fate of the Kuwaiti citizen." The statement followed a phone call between the two ministers on Monday.
