Red Cross Workers Kidnapped in Northern Syria

A team of seven workers from the International Committee of the Red Cross have been kidnapped by gunmen in Northern Syria. 

The workers, including six ICRC staff and one volunteer, were kidnapped in Idlib province earlier today after their convey was stopped on the roadside by gunmen. Syria’s state news agency said the gunmen opened fire on the team’s four vehicles before seizing the Red Cross workers at 11.30am local time (08.30 GMT).

As yet their is no confirmation as to who is behind the kidnapping, although Syrian state media has blamed terrorists, which appears to be their term for those opposed to current President Bashar al-Assad.

Northern Syria has become particularly dangerous for both aid workers and foreign journalists, with kidnappings rife in the region. The latest team to be kidnapped were in Syria to assess the medical situation and look at ways of providing medical aid, something desperately needed in the country as the humanitarian situation worsens.

The following infographic from the Canadian Red Cross shows just how bad the crisis in Syria has become: