Unknown group claims it kidnaps U.S. student in W. Bank

An unknown Palestinian group claimed on Wednesday that it kidnapped an American student in the West Bank city of Nablus earlier in the day, the Israeli local newspaper the Jerusalem Post reported.

The Palestinian security officials are investigating the claim made by the group calling itself Ansar al-Sunna, which said in a statement sent to local journalists that it abducted a U.S. student named Michael Philips, the post said.

The group also said that it faxed a photocopy of the student's passport to news agencies and Palestinian security offices, according to the report.

The Israel Defense Force (IDF) said that it was looking into the report and it had not yet obtained any confirmation of the group's claim.

If the claim was true, the kidnapping would be the second case of kidnapping of American student in the West Bank this year.

In June, a U.S. exchange student at Hebrew University in Jerusalem calling himself Bright-Fishbein was kidnapped by Palestinian gunman during his visit to Nablus and he was released unharmed after several hours in captivity.

Source: Xinhua