German Ex-Envoy Abducted in Yemen

A former German ambassador to the U.S. was abducted with his wife and three adult sons Wednesday while vacationing in Yemen, German and Yemeni officials said.

Juergen Chrobog and his family were apparently kidnapped by gunmen seeking the release of tribe members being held by Yemeni officials on charges of murder. German Foreign Ministry spokesman Martin Jaeger said the ministry would make “all possible efforts to bring the family back into safety.”

A man who said he was one of the captors later phoned Reuters news service and said the kidnappers were members of the Abdullah tribe. He said he hoped the kidnapping would put pressure on the Yemeni government to free five of his fellow tribesmen.

He said Chrobog and his family were safe. “But if force is used to free them, the hostages’ lives would be put in danger,” Reuters quoted him as saying.

Chrobog, who retired from diplomatic service in April at age 65, was a top-level diplomat for more than 30 years and handled abduction cases several times as a negotiator for the German government. From 1995 to 2001, he was ambassador to the U.S.

Chrobog began his diplomatic career in 1972. He served at the United Nations and in Brussels, Singapore and Washington.

From 1984 to 1991, he was spokesman for the German Foreign Ministry.

It is unclear whether the kidnappers knew they had abducted a former top diplomat; kidnappings are not uncommon in Yemen, and most are resolved through negotiations without casualties.

The German television network ARD said Chrobog and his family were “informal state guests” of the Yemeni government and were traveling in an organized group protected by government bodyguards when they were abducted about 290 miles east of the capital, Sana.