Several countries are calling on their citizens to leave Iraq, as insurgents abduct dozens of foreign hostages in an attempt to get coalition troops to pull out.

CTV.ca News Staff

Several countries are calling on their citizens to leave Iraq, as insurgents abduct dozens of foreign hostages in an attempt to get coalition troops to pull out.

As many as 40 foreign hostages from 12 countries have been kidnapped, according to coalition spokesperson Dan Senor.

The spate of abductions has prompted France to advise its citizens to leave Iraq. It is also warning people not to travel there.

As well, Russia's largest contractor in Iraq, Tekhpromexport, announced Tuesday it would be evacuating all its 370 staff from the country.

The announcement came after eight Ukrainian and Russian contractors were taken hostage Monday night, even though they were released by their captors early Tuesday, about 16 hours after they were abducted.

The eight all work for the Russian company Interenergoservis, which is helping to rebuild the electricity grid in Iraq.

As one group of hostages were released, more were taken.

The latest kidnapping reportedly involves four Italian security guards, who are believed to have been abducted by an Iraqi group demanding Italy pull its troops out of the country.

A tape aired by Al Jazeera showed four men seated on the ground, holding their passports. They were surrounded by armed men.

According to Italian state TV, the men were abducted on Friday near Fallujah, 55 kilometres west of Baghdad. The station said the four private security guards were working for the American company DTS Security.

It is unclear whether they are the same four people reported to have been kidnapped last week, and being held in a mosque.

Canadian held hostage

Meanwhile, Canadian officials are trying to negotiate the release of Fadi Fadel, a Canadian aid worker being held in Iraq. Fadel, who turned 33 on Friday, was captured last week in Najaf.

John Holmes, the Canadian ambassador to Jordan, said they are trying to prove Fadel is a Canadian aide worker, following reports by Arab television that he is an Israeli agent. That would make him a valuable target for insurgents.

The fate of three Japanese hostages whose captors threatened to kill them is still unknown. Japan's defence minister has cancelled plans to visit troops in southern Iraq due to security concerns, Kyodo news agency said.

At least seven American civilian employees are missing in Iraq. Six are from a subsidiary of Haliburton. They were in an area west of Baghdad when it was attacked two days ago.

A seventh U.S. civilian was snatched last Friday as he guarded a fuel convoy. His captors had threatened to kill him unless U.S. troops leave Fallujah.

Seven Chinese nationals taken near Fallujah were freed on Monday. Three Czech journalists are reported missing.

In other developments:

• U.S. troops briefly detained a representative of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al Sadr. Hazem al-Aaraji was arrested as he tried to leave a central hotel in Baghdad.
• A bomb attack on a U.S. convoy travelling from Baquba to Najaf killed one American soldier. Another soldier was wounded, as was a civilian contractor.
• The Ukrainian Defence Ministry is denying a report from Russian news agency that a Ukrainian soldier had been killed.
• A U.S. Apache helicopter crashed west of Baghdad on Tuesday. Witnesses said it was hit by ground fire during heavy fighting in the area. It reportedly came down between the city of Fallujah and Baghdad's western suburb of Abu Ghraib.
• General John Abizaid, the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, is asking for two more brigades to join 145,000 troops already in the region.
• France is urging its citizens to leave Iraq, amid an increase in violence and kidnappings.