Two years to the day since 39-year-old Christopher Howes was kidnapped in Cambodia, the Foreign Office still has no news as to his whereabouts.

The BBC's David Willis: 'There are still conflicting stories.' (1'13')

Nevertheless, the Foreign Office says that getting to the truth remains a top priority for the government.

A former member of the Royal Engineers, Mr Howes, from Backwell, near Bristol, was taken hostage whilst clearing land mines in the jungle of northern Cambodia for a British-based charity, the Mines Advisory Group.

His parents, Roy and Betty Howes, both aged 70, held a vigil with Mr Howes' sister, Patricia, and friends at their home in Yorkshire on Wednesday.

Earlier, they had attended their parish church where the local community rallied round to show support for the family and offer prayers for the missing former Falklands war veteran.

Reverend John Wright told the service: "We will continue to support the family and each other and keep the memory of Christopher alive as we trust he is still alive."

Mr Howes' abduction has always been blamed on Khmer Rouge guerrillas, whose murderous rule in the 1970s caused the death of more than a million Cambodians.

Despite these rumours about his fate, no firm evidence to back them up has ever materialised. The Khmer Rouge leadership is now denying that they are to blame.

Enquiries by a team of detectives from Scotland Yard have failed to trace a single confirmed sighting of Mr Howes.

Nor have his kidnappers ever made contact or intimated their willingness to negotiate.
 

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