Iraq releases two kidnapped Filipino women

Diyala (Iraqinews.com) – Iraqi police released on Sunday two Filipino women, who were kidnapped yesterday on a road linking the Iraqi capital Baghdad to the Kurdish city of Erbil, a police commander from the province of Diyala was quoted as saying.

The pair were traveling along with three other Filipino nationals on Saturday when their car broke down, Egyptian website Youm7 quoted two security sources as saying.

When the two left the car, unidentified men driving a yellow car pulled over and took them into an unknown location.

There has been a surge in violence and abduction incidents by remnants of Islamic State since Iraq announced the crushing defeat of the terrorist group last year.

Iraq declared victory over Islamic State last December with the help of a US-led alliance, having retaken all the territory captured by the extremists in 2014 and 2015.

Iraqi officials always warn that kidnapping cases are affecting investments in Iraq, where these cases have become a threat to businesses, employees and investors. This could lead businesses to move or avoid the country.

In the chaos of 2003, when the US-led coalition invaded Iraq, and at the peak of the civil war in 2006 and 2007, kidnapping cases increased and gangs proliferated, which led to the emergence of the prominent abduction groups and organized crime concept.