Taliban Taliban Kill One Hostage
Another Deadline Set for 5:30 a.m.
By Yoon Won-sup with Gul Khan
Staff Reporter
KABUL _ The Taliban, who have taken 23 Koreans hostage since Thursday in Afghanistan, killed one sick male captive Wednesday.
Police officials in Ghazni Province confirmed the killing of one hostage, according to Taliban sources here. Korean government officials said that the victim seemed to be the Rev. Bae Hyung-kyu, 42, whom the Taliban claimed to have deserted on the road in Musheky, Ghazni.
``That hostage was executed by the kidnappers,'' a source said. ``The talks on the swap of hostages and Taliban prisoners also failed and deadline continued.''
Yousuf Ahmadi, purported spokesman of the Taliban, also said the Taliban killed a male Korean and threatened again to kill the other hostages unless the Afghan government is ready to release the Taliban prisoners by what they call the ``final'' deadline of 1 a.m. Thursday _ 5:30 a.m. Thursday (Korea Standard Time).
``We call on the South Korean government, parliament and its people to pressure the Afghan government to accept our demands or we'll kill more hostages after the deadline passes,'' Ahmadi was quoted as saying by AFP.
At the same time, eight of 23 Koreans were released through the negotiation between the Afghan government and the Taliban, according to Yonhap news agency.
However, an Afghan governor and the Taliban both denied the report. ``No one has been freed so far,'' Ahmadi told AFP.
The eight were moved to a U.S. military base in Ghazni and will return home as soon as possible after undergoing a physical check-up.
The release news came after reports that a lot of ransom was given to the Taliban.
The Afghan government paid a large amount of money to the Taliban and promised to release eight Taliban prisoners in return for the release of eight Koreans, Japan's Kyodo news agency reported.
The payment was announced minutes before the Taliban threatened to kill the hostages by the deadline of 2 p.m. Wednesday. However, the exact amount of money was not revealed.
The Taliban said the stalled negotiation prompted the threat.
``Afghan and South Korean governments are not sincere in talks, as we handed them a list of eight Taliban prisoners but there was no reply from them so far,'' Ahmadi was quoted as saying by the Afghan Islamic Press (AIP).
Meanwhile, the Taliban's demand of swapping its prisoners with hostages is hardly viable with the Afghan government because the United States and other Western countries have been strongly opposed to it.
Abdul Khaliq, Afghan deputy interior minister, said Tuesday that his country will not make a deal with the Taliban, ``against national interest and constitution.'' Afghan President Haid Karzai said in March, following the release of five Taliban prisoners for an Italian journalist, that his government would not make any more hostage deals.
Late Tuesday, the Taliban said they were ready to free eight out of the 23 Koreans in exchange for eight jailed Taliban militants and delivered a list of eight militants to the Afghan government.
Korean negotiators, accompanied by Afghan elders and clerics, began direct negotiation with the Taliban on Tuesday.
The Korean abductees _ 18 women and five men, mostly doctors and nurses in their 20s and 30s _ went to Afghanistan to offer volunteer medical services. Most of them are members of the Saemmul Community Church in Bundang, Gyeonggi Province.
Officials in Seoul didn't confirm any demands from the Taliban for fear that any confirmation may negatively influence ongoing negotiations. They stressed a cautious approach to the issue, considering its sensitivity.
President Roh Moo-hyun also asked the nation to stay calm as it anxiously awaits the outcome of the multilateral efforts to free the hostages.