MOSCOW - The international aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres said it was resuming operations Tuesday in Ingushetia, the Russian region that has absorbed the bulk of refugees from the conflict in Chechnya, after a four-week suspension following the kidnapping of one of the group's employees.

Arjan Erkel, a Dutch citizen who heads the group's mission in the nearby Dagestan region, was kidnapped on Aug. 12.

The group, known in English as Doctors Without Borders, halted its work in Ingushetia and Dagestan after Erkel's kidnapping. Operations in Chechnya had already been suspended to protest the July kidnapping there of Russian aid worker Nina Davidovich.

MSF said in a statement that it was resuming work in Ingushetia "for the sake of the thousands of civilians in the republic who are in need of assistance after nearly a month of a suspension of activities."

The group distributes essential drugs and medical material to hospitals and clinics in Ingushetia, provides medical consultations to refugees and conducts water and sanitation projects in refugee camps.

Activities in Dagestan and Chechnya remain suspended, MSF said. However, the group said it will continue providing direct life-saving assistance in case of emergencies in Chechnya. In order to monitor developments, offices in Dagestan and Chechnya remain open, it said.

MSF repeated its demand for Erkel's immediate and unconditional release.