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Kabul Kidnap Attempt Targeted American, Expats: U.S. Embassy

The revelation comes less than a week after armed men snatched an aid worker in the eastern city of Jalalabad.

An American citizen was the target of an attempted kidnap in the Afghan capital, the U.S. Embassy in Kabul said Thursday.

The embassy said the attempted kidnap took place on Monday and targeted "several expatriates," including an American.

"We are working to arrest the suspects"

"There are no further details regarding the targets, timing, or method of any planned kidnappings," the embassy said, warning U.S. citizens that the threat of kidnapping and hostage-taking remains "very high."

The incident took place in a residential neighborhood of Kabul, according to Afghanistan's Interior Ministry Spokesman Sediq Sediqqi.

He said surveillance video and local police records show the foreigners were traveling in an SUV when their car was cut off and blocked in by another SUV.

Two men emerged from that vehicle and approached the car carrying the foreigners, which then speedily reversed onto a main road where there is a police checkpoint. At that point the men ran back to their vehicle and sped away, Sediqqi added.

He told NBC News that police were working on identifying the men and a potential motive but declined to identify the foreigners or any other nationalities involved, citing the ongoing investigation.

"Sufficient safety measures have been provided and we are working to arrest the suspects," he said.

The revelation comes about a week after armed men claiming to be Afghan intelligence agents snatched an aid worker in the eastern city of Jalalabad.