Hostages' bodies 'found in Yemen'

At least seven foreign hostages seized in Yemen, including at least one child, have been found dead, officials say. They are thought to be from a group of nine foreigners, three of them children, who were kidnapped last week in a mountainous northern area. The group comprised seven Germans, a British national and a South Korean. One report says all nine hostages have been killed - but the deaths have not been confirmed by officials in Berlin, London and Seoul. No-one has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping, which Yemen blamed on a local Shia rebel group. More than 200 foreign nationals have been kidnapped in Yemen in the last 15 years, often for ransom. But most have been released unharmed. Militant groups Yemeni officials said on Monday that the hostages' bodies had been found dumped in the streets of Shukwan, a town in the rugged north-western province of Saada, which is near the border with Saudi Arabia.Yemen's Interior Ministry earlier said the foreigners were kidnapped while on apicnic on Friday in the area. The authorities said the group included a German doctor, his wife and three children, and also a male British engineer and a female South Korean teacher. The kidnapped adults all worked at a hospital in Saada, the state news agency said. British and German government officials said on Monday they were investigating reports of the deaths. "We are pressing ahead for examination of this information. For the moment, I cannot give any confirmation," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said. South Korea's foreign ministry also said it was checking the reported deaths. The Yemeni government blamed a local Shia rebel group, led by Abdulmalik al-Houthi, for the kidnapping. The group has fought a sporadic insurgency in the Zaidi Shia heartland between the capital, Sanaa, and the border with Saudi Arabia. But it denied any involvement in a statement. A local tribal leader in the area, speaking to the Associated Press news agency anonymously, blamed al-Qaeda. Al-Qaeda is known to have operated in the area, and analysts say it may be regrouping in Yemen after coming under pressure in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. CIA Director Leon Panetta said last week that Somalia and Yemen may have become safe havens for the group. Yemeni authorities said on Sunday they had arrested Hassan Hussein Bin Alwan, described as the al-Qaeda's financier in the region and one of its "most dangerous members".