Frenchwoman kidnapped in Yemen

PARIS -- A Frenchwoman working for the World Bank was kidnapped Tuesday morning in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, France's president said.

The 30-year-old woman was kidnapped in front of a ministry building, President Francois Hollande told a news conference.

"We demand her liberation as quickly as possible," Hollande said. "We are trying to locate her and we will do everything so that she can be freed."

There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

Yemen is the base for an especially active al Qaeda affiliate.

The Yemeni state news agency SABA carried comments from an unidentified official in Sanaa who said gunmen forced the woman and her translator into a car.

The French Foreign Ministry closed its embassy earlier this year along with numerous Western embassies as Yemen devolved into chaos.

The French Foreign Ministry "renewed with insistence" a recommendation made two weeks ago for all French citizens to leave the country as quickly as possible.