Two Italian Red Cross workers were abducted at gunpoint in the south Gaza town of Khan Yunis earlier in the day. The two men, identified as Claudio Moroni, 36, and Gianmarco Onorato, 63, were driving alone back to Gaza City when they were stopped by gunmen, forced out of their vehicle at gunpoint and driven away, an International Red Cross spokesman said.
The Red Cross' decision to suspend field work deals yet another blow to Palestinians already reeling from a social and financial meltdown brought on by a West-led aid boycott.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2006