You're reading: Official: 2 Russians, 1 Italian seized in Syria

MOSCOW — Russian diplomats say two Russian citizens and an Italian have been kidnapped in Syria.

Details were few, but a spokesman for the Russian embassy in Syria says all three were employees of a private company in Syria.

The spokesman, Sergei Markov, told Russian state-controlled television Channel One on Tuesday that the three were kidnapped on the road between Tartus, where Russia has a naval base, and Homs.

The Interfax News Agency reports that Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, speaking in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, said “all necessary steps are being taken in Syria and other countries that may influence the situation.”

Russia has been the key international ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad whose embattled regime is fighting rebel forces.