Sudanese rebels have kidnapped about 30 Chinese construction workers who were building a road in a remote stretch of the country, Chinese and Sudanese sources said Sunday.

The workers' camp in South Kordofan was attacked late Saturday by the Sudan People's Liberation Movement, a guerrilla force said to be allied with Southern Sudan, the world's newest country. A rebel spokesman was quoted saying 29 Chinese workers were being held "for their own safety" because of fighting in the area.

In Beijing, the foreign ministry confirmed Sunday that its nationals have "gone missing."