Two Jewish Agency representatives kidnapped in Algeria last week are believed alive and being held for ransom, it was reported here today from Algeria. The Algerian authorities are reluctant to reveal any of the background of the kidnapping and the steps they have taken in the matter.
As put together from various sources, it appears that the two Jews–Jacob Hassan, director of the Algeria office of the Agency, and Raphael Ben Gera, a representative from the Jerusalem headquarters–were on a fund-raising mission when they were abducted. It is believed that they were carrying a large sum of money with them and that this was seized and their captors are asking a further ransom for their release. They are believed to have been captured by a unit of the Algerian rebel forces.
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