Al-Thani hunters still missing from Iraq

Nine Al-Thanis kidnapped in December while hunting in southern Iraq are still being held, according to a senior member of the Qatari ruling family. The nine were part of a group of 26 people who were on a hunting trip in Al-Muthanna province’s Samawa desert when armed militias attacked their camp in the middle of the night. Some of the group escaped because they were away on a night hunting expedition. Following the kidnap, Al-Muthanna governor Faleh Al-Zayadi banned all Gulf hunting parties from the area.