Two Japanese civilians were apparently abducted Wednesday in suburban Baghdad -- just one day before three other Japanese taken hostage last week were released.
The pair, a witness reported, were in a taxi when they were stopped by other cars and snatched by gunmen.
One of the two Japanese is believed to be Jumpei Yasuda, a 30-year-old freelance journalist, while the other is believed to be Yasuda's roommate, Nobutaka Watanabe, a 36-year-old member of the nongovernmental organization Trans-Pacific GI/SDF Rights Hotline.