French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin has held an emergency meeting with senior cabinet ministers to discuss how to respond to the apparent kidnapping of two French journalists in Iraq.
Islamic militants in Iraq, who say they have abducted the reporters, are demanding the French government rescind a ban on Islamic headscarves in French schools which is to take effect Wednesday.
The militants, calling themselves the Islamic Army in Iraq, made their demands known in a video broadcast by al-Jazeera Arab television Saturday. The group claimed responsibility for the murder of an Italian journalist this past week.
The French foreign ministry has called for the hostages' release, but declined comment on the militants' demands.
In another development, an Islamist website posted a video of one of 12 Nepalese hostages held by another group that has warned foreign workers to stay out of Iraq.
Information for this report is provided by AP and AFP.