Nepalese hostage in Iraq 'freed'

Nepal was rocked by the killing of 12 hostages in Iraq earlier this year

The authorities in Nepal say that a Nepalese man kidnapped in Iraq on Monday has been released.

A Saudi Arabian company which hired Inus Kabadi to work in Iraq has confirmed his release, a Nepalese government spokesman said.

Mr Kabadi was one of eight people kidnapped in the capital, Baghdad, on Monday.

The kidnapping came two months after the murder of 12 Nepalese men in Iraq, an event which shocked the nation.

"We have received confirmation through our diplomats and the employers of the Nepalese worker that he has been freed by the hostage takers," Nepal's Foreign Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat told the Associated Press.

I can't believe it. I am very happy and thrilled Taslim Kabadi, father

Mr Mahat, who is in the United Arab Emirates, said Mr Kabadi has been taken to Baghdad airport after his release.

Mr Kabadi's father, Taslim, told Reuters news agency from the family home in the village of Ruapitha, 400km (250 miles) east of Kathmandu: "I can't believe it. I am very happy and thrilled."

A Muslim, Taslim said: "I will go to the mosque and offer special Friday prayers to God for the freedom of my son. God is great."

Ban

The Al Jazeera television network also said it had information Mr Kabadi had been freed, along with a Filipino, although the Philippine government said it could not confirm this release.

It is not yet clear who abducted Mr Kabadi and when he was released.

Of the eight men who were captured in Iraq on Monday, five were Iraqis, one was Nepali, one American and one Filipino. Two of the Iraqis were later released.

They were all reported to be working for a Saudi company.

The Nepalese government has appealed to its citizens to stop going to Iraq for employment after the latest abduction.

Twelve Nepalese workers were kidnapped and then murdered in Iraq in August, an incident that triggered off widespread violence in Nepal.

An ongoing Maoist insurgency and worsening poverty have forced thousands of Nepalese to travel to the Middle East, including Iraq, in search of jobs.