BAGHDAD, July 16: The head of Iraq’s North Oil Company, Adel Qazaz, was kidnapped in Baghdad on Sunday, an oil ministry official said.

Travelling in a plain, unofficial car to avoid attention, Qazaz was being driven back to the northern oil capital of Kirkuk following a meeting at the oil ministry when gunmen in two cars forced his vehicle to stop in northern Baghdad.

Qazaz’s bodyguards were overpowered and the assailants drove off with their hostage.

Nothing had been heard from the kidnappers, the official added.

“Work at the company will go on as normal tomorrow,” he said.

Exports from the northern fields, briefly restored last month after a lengthy suspension, have been at a standstill again since last week.

The official said they were not expected to resume soon.

It was the second high-profile kidnapping in the capital in as many days, following the abduction of the head of Iraq’s National Olympic Committee and 30 other people on Saturday.—Reuters