A French tourist has been kidnapped in Algeria
by a militant group linked to Islamic State (IS),
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius has
confirmed. Herve Gourdel, 55, was seized on Sunday in the
unsettled north-east Kabylie area. Algerian militant group Jund al-Khilafa threatened
to kill him if France did not halt air strikes on Iraq. Mr Fabius said an online video that showed Mr
Gourdel flanked by armed men was authentic. He said France would do everything it could to
liberate Mr Gourdel, but that the situation was
"extremely critical." Islamic State militants warned on Sunday they
would target Americans and other Western citizens,
"especially the spiteful and filthy French", after
French jets joined the US in carrying out strikes in
Iraq on IS targets. France on Monday raised the threat level for 30 of
its embassies throughout the Middle East and Africa
in response to what Interior Minister Bernard
Cazeneuve called "yet another demonstration of
the barbarism of these terrorists". IS jihadists have seized large swathes of territory in
eastern Syria and across northern and western
Iraq, forcing tens of thousands of people to flee
their homes this year. French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said there would
be "no discussion, no negotiation" with the
kidnappers. "If you give in, if you go back one
inch... you give [terrorism] this victory," he told
French radio while on a visit to Germany on
Tuesday. In this still from the video, Herve Gourdel can be
seen with his captors The Kabylie region is a rugged and mountainous
area of Algeria 'Extreme cruelty' France's foreign ministry said in a statement: "We
confirm the authenticity of the video showing
images of French hostage Herve Gourdel,
kidnapped in Algeria in the region of Tizi Ozou on
Sunday." "The threats made by this terrorist group show
once again the extreme cruelty of [Islamic State]
and those who say they are affiliated to it." Speaking in New York, where he is attending the
UN General Assembly, Mr Fabius told reporters: "We
will do everything we can to liberate hostages... but
a terrorist group cannot change France's position." In the video, Mr Gourdel, flanked by two masked
men, identifies himself as a 55-year-old from Nice,
southern France. Apparently speaking under duress, he said: "This
armed group is asking me to ask you [French
President Francois Hollande] to not intervene in
Iraq." French media say he is an experienced mountain
guide and photographer with a taste for exploring,
who set up a hiking centre in the Mercantour
national park north of Nice. The Algerian interior ministry said he and two
Algerian companions had been driving through
mountains near the village of Ait Ouabane, when
they were stopped by armed men. The gunmen let the Algerians go but seized the
Frenchman. Journalists gathered outside Mr Gourdel's home
in southern France on Monday Extra security was visible at the Eiffel Tower in
Paris as France raised its threat level Algerian group Jund al-Khilafa (Soldiers of the
Caliphate) pledged allegiance to IS on 14
September. Until then it had been known as part of al-Qaeda in
the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), which grew out of an
Algerian militant group and is now active across
North and parts of West Africa. The group claimed Toulouse gunman Mohamed
Merah, a French citizen of Algerian origin, as a
member after he murdered seven people in south-
western France in March 2012, French radio
reported. The militants said that they were responding to the
IS call to attack citizens involved in strikes on Iraq
and would kill Mr Gourdel unless France ended its
military operation. France's public position is that it does not negotiate
with militant groups but there have been reports of
French citizens being released in West Africa after
ransoms have been paid. Four Frenchmen kidnapped in Niger were freed in
October 2013 amid reports of a 20m-euro (£16m; £
$25m) ransom being paid. The government in Paris
denied that was the case. 'Everything being done' President Francois Hollande's office said he had
spoken to Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal
by phone and that there was "total co-operation"
to try to find Mr Gourdel. "Authorities are mobilised and no hypothesis is
being discarded," the French government added. Kabylie is a rugged, mountainous region which has
seen several kidnappings of Algerian businessmen
for extortion. AQIM has carried out deadly attacks
in Kabylie this year. Most of those who were abducted were later freed
by security forces.
Source:
m.bbc.com/news/world-europe-29319226