Hostage's 'Maltese passport' could be false - police

The police said yesterday it was suspected that the photograph of a person taken hostage by an Islamic militant group operating in Chechnya was not a Maltese national, even though he was shown holding a Maltese passport.

Earlier this week, the militant group Badr Brigades posted an internet statement saying it was holding a Maltese hostage and that it would execute him. It alleged the man was seized in Europe in possession of intelligence on rebel groups in Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

The police said investigations showed there were no Maltese passports with the numbers shown on the internet site. In addition, the type of passport shown has not been used for quite some time and is probably false, they added.