4 Indians Kidnapped In Libya, Islamic State Group Suspected Of Involvement In Abduction

Four Indian nationals have been abducted in Libya, the country's foreign ministry confirmed Friday. All four are from southern Indian states of Telangana and Karnataka, the foreign ministry reportedly said.

Three of the kidnapped Indians were teaching and one was working at a university in city of Sirte on the northern coast of Libya for the past year, Ministry of External Affairs spokesman Vikas Swarup reportedly said.

The kidnappers have not yet made any ransom demands and the foreign ministry is reportedly trying to establish the whereabouts of the four Indians. It remains unclear who kidnapped the teachers and where they have been taken. However, Indian media outlets are reporting that the Islamic State group, which has presence in Sirte, is suspected of involvement in the abduction.

Last July, amid internecine violence in Libya, the Indian government issued a travel advisory for the country, which asked the Indian nationals to leave. At the same time, at least 65 Indian nurses were trapped in the country, though they subsequently returned safely in August.

Separately, 39 Indian construction workers were kidnapped by ISIS in the troubled Iraqi city of Mosul in June 2014. Although their fate is still not known, India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said this February that all the 39 captives are “alive.”