No word on U.S. aid worker kidnapped in Afghanistan

Afghanistan's government said it had no information on Tuesday about the fate of a kidnapped U.S. female aid worker, but added a search was going on to find her.

No group has claimed responsibility for the abduction of the 49-year-old woman, identified as Cindy Mizzel, who was seized while wearing an all-covering burqa from her car along with her driver while heading for work on Saturday in the southern province of Kandahar.

"No, we have no information about it at all," interior ministry spokesman said when asked by Reuters if the government knew how she was or if any group had make a ransom demand.

The U.S. embassy has not made any comment about the woman's abduction.

She had been living for years in a rented house in Kandahar, part of the main stronghold of Taliban insurgents who have been behind a series of abductions of foreigners and Afghans in recent years.

Taliban spokesmen say the militant group was not involved.

In addition to the Taliban, criminal gangs and drug dealers have also carried out some kidnappings.

Many kidnapped foreign nationals have been freed in the past under various deals while the abductions of Afghans are routine and mostly not reported.