Hunt continues for BBC reporter

Journalists called for more to be done to ensure Johnston's release

Efforts are continuing to locate the BBC Gaza correspondent Alan Johnston, who disappeared more than a week ago and is presumed to have been kidnapped.

Palestinian journalists in Gaza have held a one-day strike in support of Mr Johnston and called for his release.

The BBC has said it is increasingly concerned about his safety.

On Tuesday the British foreign secretary, Margaret Beckett, said she had raised the issue with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

She said the Foreign Office in London was using every opportunity and channel to secure his release.

Palestinian colleagues in the West Bank said they were holding a two-hour protest outside Mr Abbas's office in Ramallah to demand more be done to solve the situation.

Respected reporter

Alan Johnston has been the BBC's correspondent in the Gaza Strip for the past three years - and the only foreign journalist from a major media organisation based in Gaza.

The BBC describes him as a highly experienced and respected reporter.

Aged 44, he was born in Tanzania and educated in Scotland.

He joined the BBC World Service in 1991 and has spent eight of the last 16 years as a correspondent, including periods in Uzbekistan and Afghanistan.

His Gaza posting is due to come to an end at the end of this month.