“We unfortunately confirm the kidnapping this morning, in Sanaa, of a French national working for an international organization,” the ministry said in a statement. “We are fully mobilized to try and locate her and ensure a speedy liberation.”

The Frenchwoman 30-year-old working for the World Bank and was kidnapped in front of a ministry building, President Francois Hollande told a news conference.

Security sources said earlier on Tuesday that gunmen had kidnapped a French woman and her Yemeni driver in the center of Yemen’s capital while she was heading to work.

Al-Qaeda has an established presence in the country and has frequently targeted foreigners.

Foreigners have previously been kidnapped by Yemeni tribesmen, to push the government to free jailed relatives or provide them with better services.