German nurse kidnapped by gunmen in Mogadishu

UNIDENTIFIED gunmen kidnapped a German nurse from the International Committee of the Red Cross in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, on Wednesday night.

Abductions and killings of Somali aid workers are common in the Horn of Africa country, but targeting foreign workers has become less frequent in recent years as security improved.

“We received the report minutes after she was abducted and are searching the whole area,” Major Mohamed Hussein said.

The ICRC said the abduction occurred around 8pm.

The nurse, Sonja Nientiet, has worked for the ICRC since 2014 in conflict zones, including Syria and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

This week in Mogadishu, she had been giving first aid training, the ICRC said. She also cared for Somalis at hospitals, clinics and places of detention.

“She is a nurse who spends her days caring for vulnerable people in Somalia. She’s a true humanitarian,” Crystal Wells, the ICRC’s spokeswoman in Nairobi said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the abduction.

The Swiss-based agency, which has provided humanitarian aid in Somalia for years, said it was in touch with a range of authorities.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said yesterday that the government could not comment on the case.

Somalia has suffered lawlessness since 1991, when warlords ousted dictator Siad Barre and then turned on each other. –