Bangladeshi among foreign oil workers seized by Islamic State in Libya

Bangladesh confirmed Monday that one of its citizens is among nine foreign nationals taken hostage by Islamic State militants in Libya.

The nine oil workers were abducted Friday from the Al Ghani oil field south of the city of Surt after militants reportedly stormed the facility, killing several Libyan guards.

The foreigners were working for an Austrian oil services company and included an Austrian, a Czech and at least one person from the Philippines, according to Czech Foreign Minister Lubomir Zaoralek.

The kidnapping is the latest in a series of major incidents targeting foreigners in North Africa, carried out by militants claiming loyalty to Islamic State. Others include an attack on a hotel in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, and the beheadings of at least a dozen Egyptian Christians last month.

Bangladeshi authorities identified the kidnap victim as Helal Uddin, a resident of Jamalpur district in the northern part of the South Asian nation.

The Bangladeshi Embassy in Tripoli was trying to locate the man, the Foreign Ministry said in a news release.

Millions of Bangladeshis have left their impoverished country to become migrant workers, primarily in the Middle East.

Libyan security forces say they have taken back the oil field.

Kader is a special correspondent. Staff writer Bengali reported from Mumbai, India.