An Israeli Arab working with the US TV channel CNN was kidnapped by armed Palestinians in Gaza City on Monday, witnesses said.

The abductors blocked a taxi carrying the CNN staff on a busy Gaza street and ordered producer Riyadh Ali out of the car at gunpoint, CNN correspondent Ben Wedeman told the station.

He said the kidnapping seemed to have been planned, and they specifically targeted Riyadh Ali.

The kidnappers' motive was not clear. No group has claimed responsibility.

Such incidents involving journalists have been rare in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank during the past four years of Palestinian Intifada (Uprising).

The Palestinian National Authority was attempting to discover who had abducted Ali and would try to secure his release.