2 French nationals are reported kidnapped in Ethiopia

The Associated Press

PARIS — Two expatriate staff for French aid group Medecins du Monde have been kidnapped in a rebellious southeastern region of Ethiopia.

The pair were kidnapped on Monday in Ethiopia’s Ogaden region, an arid stretch of land on the border with Somalia where rebels are fighting for independence, the Paris-based group said.

Medecins du Monde – which translates as Doctors of the World – did not give the names or nationalities of the kidnapped staffers. Nor did it give other details about the kidnapping or the kidnappers.

The aid group, in a statement Tuesday, said it is in contact with the authorities, with its other staffers in the Horn of Africa country and with the two staffers’ families.

Ethnic Somalis have been fighting in the Ogaden for more than a decade, seeking greater autonomy or an independent state. Somalia lost control of the region – the size of Britain and home to around 4 million people, in a war in 1977.

The region is being explored for oil and gas. Ethiopian forces stepped up their operations after the rebel Ogaden National Liberation Front attacked a Chinese-run oil exploration field in April 2007, killing 74 people.

Drought and the rebellion have also combined to create severe food shortages in the region. Because of the military campaign, the government has restricted humanitarian agencies and others from accessing the Ogaden.