Pakistan on Sunday launched an appeal for the release of its embassy staff member, kidnapped Saturday night in Baghdad.

"Pakistan appeals to the captors to release our embassy staff on humanitarian grounds," Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said in a press conference here on Sunday.

Malik Mohammad Javed, a non-diplomatic staff member in the Pakistani embassy at Baghdad was kidnapped by a group when he went to offer prayers in a nearby mosque.

Pakistan Foreign Office said that persons claiming to be members of the Omar bin Khattab group have apparently kidnapped the official.

"We will neither withdraw our staff nor shut the mission," Sheikh Rashid said.

The information minister said that the Iraqi ambassador in Islamabad was called to the Foreign office on Sunday and was conveyed concern over the kidnapping.

Foreign Office said in a statement that the Iraqi ambassador assured that every possible attempt will be made to secure the safe release of the embassy staff.

Foreign Office said that Malik Javed contacted charge D affairs in Baghdad and said that he is safe.
 
In July last year, insurgents kidnapped two other Pakistanis, Raja Azad an engineer, and Sajad Naeem, a driver in Iraq. Both were killed July 28. They were working for a Kuwait company in Iraq.

The kidnappers asked Pakistan to promise not to send troops to Iraq.

Despite requests by the United States Pakistan has refused to send troops to Iraq.

Pakistan has asked its citizens not to travel to Iraq after the murder of its nationals in Iraq.

(Xinhua News Agency April 11, 2005)