Islamic State jihadists have kidnapped more than 70 Assyrian Christians after a string of attacks in northeastern Syria.
Two activist groups reported the abductions. The Islamic State's online radio station reported they had detained "tens of crusaders" and seized 10 villages.
ISIS frequently refers to Christians as "crusaders." It's not clear what ISIS plans to do with kidnapped Assyrians.
Meanwhile, New Zealand is planning to send a small number of troops to Iraq to help train local forces in the fight against ISIS.
New Zealand is part of a 62-nation coalition battling the Islamic State. Most of the troops will likely be based north of Baghdad.
The troops will be training Iraqi security forces and will not be involved in combat missions. The two-year deployment would begin around May and would be reviewed by the government after nine months.
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