Taliban say not releasing South Korean hostages: report
Posted: 12 August 2007 1217 hrs
SEOUL: Afghanistan's Taliban have decided not to free any of the 21
South Korean hostages despite earlier saying two women could go,
the Korea's Yonhap news agency reported Sunday citing an
insurgents' spokesman.
Yonhap quoted Taliban spokesman Yousuf Ahmadi as saying, "Our
leaders have changed their minds and decided not to free two female
hostages."
South Korean officials refused to confirm the report.
After face-to-face talks between the Taliban and a South Korean
delegation, Ahmadi told AFP late Saturday that the two women, who
are reported to be ill, were being released unconditionally as a
"gesture of goodwill."
The Taliban abducted 23 Christian aid workers in volatile southern
Ghazni province on July 19. Two male hostages have been shot dead,
and the insurgents have threatened to kill the rest unless captured
militants are released from jail in exchange for their lives.
But Kabul, backed by Washington, has refused to accept that demand,
fearing it would only encourage more kidnappings.
The government in Seoul, meanwhile, says it is powerless to bring
about a prisoner release. - AFP/ac
