Iraqi minister says 'blackmail' behind kidnapping of U.S. citizens

CAIRO (Reuters) - Iraq's defense minister said on Thursday the three Americans who went missing in Baghdad last week had been seized by an "organized gang that carries out abductions for blackmail". In an interview with Reuters in Cairo, Khaled al-Obaidi did not elaborate.The three men are employed by a small company that is doing work for General Dynamics Corp, under a larger contract with the U.S. Army, according to a source familiar with the matter. Iraqi intelligence and U.S. government sources said on Tuesday the three were being held by an Iranian-backed Shi'ite militia. They would be the first Americans to be abducted in Iraq since the withdrawal of U.S. troops in 2011. The U.S. sources said Washington had no reason to believe Tehran was involved and did not believe the trio were being held in Iran, which borders Iraq. Unknown gunmen seized the three on Friday from a private residence in the southeastern Dora district of Baghdad, Iraqi officials say. In Davos, Switzerland on Thursday, Iraqi Prime Minister Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said however they "just went missing," and he very much doubted any Iranian involvement. (Reporting by Malak Ghobrial and Mahmoud Mourad; English version written by Maher Chmaytelli; editing by Andrew Roche)