They were among a larger group of people - including Shia and Sunni shopkeepers and pedestrians - abducted in the Sanak area of the Iraqi capital.

They were taken by gunmen dressed in military uniforms, according to Iraqi police. Witnesses said the men were in 10 vehicles and shots were heard.

Correspondents say mass kidnappings are becoming commonplace in the capital.

Stores in Sanak are owned by a mix of Shias and Sunnis and it was not immediately clear why the area was targeted in Thursday's incident, the Associated Press news agency reports.

They grabbed people haphazardly - Sunnis, Shias Eyewitness Mohammed al-Motaie

And it is not clear how many people were taken - with estimates varying between 30 and 70.

Mohammed Qassim Jassim, 37, who works in Sanak, said the attack started about 1100 local time.

"We heard cars and shootings in the area and then we saw gunmen wearing Iraqi army uniforms and driving SUVs who were snatching people from the shops and street.

"It took like 20 minutes for them to fan out and control the area," AP quoted him as saying.

Eyewitness Mohammed al-Motaie told AFP news agency: "Once they were in full control of the situation they began picking people up. They grabbed people haphazardly - Sunnis, Shias."

The BBC's Andrew North in Baghdad says people are kidnapped every day in Baghdad, but mass kidnapping such as this have become more common.

Last month, dozens of staff and visitors were abducted from the higher education ministry and it is still not clear what happened to many of them.