Foreign Ministry and embassy officials in Iraq are awaiting developments from contacts with Iraqi religious leaders helping to seek the release of the eight Chinese hostages.

Diplomats have contacted the local Association of Islamic Clerics, who assisted in securing the release of seven Chinese held in Iraq last April, sources said.

An influential Sunni Muslim body also called for the release of all kidnapped people in Iraq yesterday on the occasion of the Muslim feast of Adhaa.

The Association of Muslim Scholars appealed in a statement for Muslims "in all parties that have kidnapped people, to release them and end their suffering whoever they are, Iraqis or others."

The statement called on kidnappers to "deal with them according to the norms of our religion, and not to terrify them by threatening them with death or other means, which Islam forbids."

Meanwhile, government leaders urged officials to continue all efforts in seeking the safe rescue of the eight workers from Fujian Province, believed to have been abducted as they were traveling to Jordan.

President Hu Jintao, Premier Wen Jiabao and others voiced concern over the safety of the men, and ordered Foreign Ministry and embassy staff to take every possible measure to gain their freedom.

Also yesterday, officials from the foreign affairs and commerce ministries issued emergency warnings for nationals, including business people and construction workers, to be cautious and to avoid traveling to Iraq. Those who do work abroad should employ legal channels, they said.

A Chinese entrepreneur who has been doing business in Iraq for more than 20 years helped to clarify just where the eight hostages were working; he said the men had no links with US troops.

According to yesterday evening's Beijing-based Fazhi Wanbao, the last man thought to have had close contact with the hostages, Chen Xianzhong, said the site where the men had been working was a clothing-processing plant owned by Chinese business people

Iraqi insurgents had accused them of "working for one of the Chinese companies helping to build American facilities in Iraq."

"It is fantastic talk to say they were working for companies helping the Americans with their facilities," Chen was quoted as saying.

Chen said ten natives of Fujian Province came to Iraq with the hope of earning money early last year. They met him five months after their arrival and were introduced by him to the clothes-processing company, which required reconstruction.

"They stayed in Iraq for about a year," said Chen, who later helped them fill out their visa applications to Jordan.

Two of the workers, Chen Bo and Weng Zuxue, stayed in Iraq and didn't go with their countrymen, who began their journey to Jordan on January 12.

Yang, a Chinese representative of the clothes-processing company, said, "I have no idea why they were kidnapped by those militants since our company doesn't have a single link with the United States." He said they had left the company in November.

The hostages were named yesterday as Lin Qiang (39 years old), Wei Wu (19), Zhou Sunlin (18), Lin Bin (39), Lin Zhong (38), Chen Qin’ai (37), Zhou Sunqin (17) and Lin Xiong (34).

(China Daily/Xinhua News Agency January 20, 2005)