Niger forces hunt French hostages

A desperate search is underway for two Frenchmen abducted in the capital of the desert nation, Niger.

The pair were seized and driven away from a crowded restaurant. One had apparently just arrived in Niamey to attend the other’s wedding. It is feared they could be in the hands of al Qaeda’s North African wing.

Four heavily-armed assailants burst in and took the first two white people they found, according to eyewitness Mamane Rabiou Abdou Bacar. He said the gunmen pointed their weapons at others too, to stop anyone entering or leaving.

It is the latest in a string of kidnappings in Niger. Five French citizens were seized in the north last September along with a Togolese and a Madagascan. They are being held by al Qaeda.

Niger says its forces located the hostage-takers near the border with Mali. But, despite an exchange of fire, they managed to escape.

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