Iraqi Forces Frees Abducted German Arts Advocate

Iraqi security forces have freed a German woman who was abducted in Baghdad this week, a spokesman said.

Hella Mewis, a long-term resident of the Iraqi capital, went missing on Monday night after she left her office in central Baghdad.

Her rescue was announced in a brief statement on Twitter by the armed forces spokesman, Brigadier General Yahya Rasool. He did not provide further details.

A security official who spoke on condition of anonymity told Associated Press that Ms Mewis was freed at 6.25 am in a raid by security forces on a location outside Baghdad, based on information they obtained regarding her whereabouts.

Ms. Mewis was reported missing by friends and activists on Tuesday. Security officials said she was kidnapped outside the Baghdad arts centre where she worked. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said his ministry set up a task force to deal with her disappearance.

There was no claim of responsibility and officials did not say who was behind the kidnapping.

Ms. Mewis has lived in Baghdad for seven years and runs an arts programme for young Iraqis. She was often seen cycling along the bustling Karrada Street, an unusual sight in Baghdad where foreigners are often cautious of the unpredictable security situation.

She is a known supporter of the mass anti-government protests that began last October and her abduction prompted alarm among Iraqi activists and other foreigners living in the country. It came two weeks after the killing of prominent Iraqi researcher and commentator Husham Al Hashimi by unknown gunmen.