BEIRUT (AP) — An international aid organization says five of its staffers have been taken for questioning in northern Syria.


An official with Doctors Without Borders says the five staffers have been out of contact since Thursday evening.


Media Relations Manager Michael Goldfarb did not say if the five had been taken by government forces or rebels fighting to overthrow President Bashar Assad, and refused to give further details in order to protect their safety.


He said Friday the five were taken from a Doctors Without Borders house in northern Syria "allegedly for questioning."


Goldfarb refused to reveal their nationalities.


Kidnappings of journalists, aid workers and activists are not uncommon in rebel-held areas in Syria.



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  • Lebanese army soldiers patrol a street in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli on December 4, 2013 as the army deployed following clashes between supporters and opponents of Syria's regime. (IBRAHIM CHALHOUB/AFP/Getty Images)




  • A picture taken on December 3, 2013 shows pro regime forces walking with their weapons near al-Nabak, in the Qalamoun region on the outskirts of the capital Damascus, where they battle with rebel fighters. (SAM SKAINE/AFP/Getty Images)




  • Lebanese army soldiers patrol a street in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli on December 4, 2013 as the army deployed following clashes between supporters and opponents of Syria's regime. (IBRAHIM CHALHOUB/AFP/Getty Images)




  • Journalists take footage at the scene of a suicide attack in central Damascus on December 3, 2013. (LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images)




  • A general view shows damage at the scene of a suicide attack in central Damascus on December 3, 2013. (LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images)




  • Syrians walk past cars in central Damascus on December 3, 2013 prior to a suicide attack in the Jebbeh district of the capital causing deaths and injuries, Syrian state television reported. (LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images)




  • A picture taken on December 3, 2013 shows pro regime forces gathering around a vehicle near al-Nabak, in the Qalamoun region on the outskirts of the capital Damascus, where they battle with rebel fighters. (SAM SKAINE/AFP/Getty Images)




  • Rebel fighters fortify a barricade with destroyed public buses in the Salah al-Din neighbourhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, December 4, 2013. (MEDO HALAB/AFP/Getty Images)




  • A picture taken on December 3, 2013 shows a tank of pro regime forces smoking as it drives near al-Nabak, in the Qalamoun region on the outskirts of the capital Damascus, where they battle with rebel fighters. (SAM SKAINE/AFP/Getty Images)




  • Rebel fighters fortify a barricade with destroyed public buses in the Salah al-Din neighbourhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, December 4, 2013. (MEDO HALAB/AFP/Getty Images)




  • A pro regime soldier, holding a walkie-talkie, observes through binoculars rebel fighters' positions on December 3, 2013 near al-Nabak, in the Qalamoun region on the outskirts of the capital Damascus, where regime forces battle with opposition fighters. (SAM SKAINE/AFP/Getty Images)




  • A rebel fighter takes position during fighting with Syrian government forces in the northeastern Syrian city of Deir Ezzor on December 2, 2013. ( AHMAD ABOUD/AFP/Getty Images)




  • A rebel fighter from the Free Syrian Army holds a position with a Belgium made FAL rifle at a front line in the Salah al-Din neighbourhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, on December 1, 2013. (MOHAMMED AL-KHATIEB/AFP/Getty Images)




  • Syrian refugee children clap as they watch performance by Mabsutins, a comedian group from Europe, at Zaatari refugee camp near the Syrian border in Mafraq, Jordan, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Mohammad Hannon)




  • A picture taken on December 1, 2013, shows damaged buildings in the Salah al-Din neighbourhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo. (MOHAMMED AL-KHATIEB/AFP/Getty Images)




  • A woman cleans the debris next to a window cracked after a mortar shell hit the French school, without causing any injuries to children, in the Syrian capital Damascus on December 1, 2013. (LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images)




  • A rebel fighter runs to take cover as he holds a position in a damaged building in the northeastern Syrian city of Deir Ezzor during fightings with Syrian government forces on December 1, 2013. (AHMAD ABOUD/AFP/Getty Images)