7月2日，埃及派往伊拉克的最高外交官哈卜·谢里夫在巴格达遭绑架，目前尚没有组织宣称对此负责。据悉，谢里夫遭绑架当天晚上去买报纸，突然有武装分子乘坐两辆宝马车拦住了他的去路，并绑架了他。外电报道如下：Gunmen seized Egypt's top envoy¹ to Iraq, officials and witnesses said Sunday, in an apparent bid to discourage the country's Arab neighbors from bolstering² ties to the embattled U.S.-backed government. Insurgents⁴ killed at least three Iraqi policemen and wounded two American soldiers in a series of attacks across the insurgent³ heartland.

Visiting U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, meanwhile, praised Iraq's commitment to democracy during a surprise visit to the capital. He said Iraq is ready to accept U.S. help in investigating the killing⁵ and kidnapping of government officials.

"There are still some high-level crimes, murders and kidnappings that are not being prosecuted⁶. One reason is that the evidence is not available," Gonzales said in an interview on his return trip to Washington.

Envoy表示“外交使节，特使，信使”，多指派驻国外使馆的特命全权公使，仅低于大使。和envoy有关的名词有很多，例如：envoy extraordinary（公使）；an Imperial envoy（钦差）；a diplomatic envoy（外交使节）；a special envoy（特使）；an envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary（特命全权公使）。

据悉，谢里夫6月1日刚获得埃及驻伊首席外交官的任命，他是自2003年美国推翻萨达姆政权后，埃及任命的首位驻伊拉克首席外交官。