By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter
Taliban militants in Afghanistan have delivered a revised list of their comrades to be freed from prisons to the Afghan government for a possible hostage-for-prisoner swap deal to end the prolonged ordeal of the 22 South Korean hostages, an Afghan source said Sunday.
At the same time, the militant group has set a fresh deadline, the seventh of its kind since its kidnapping of Koreans on July 19, on the lives of the abductees believed to be held in small groups in different locations.
Yousuf Ahmadi, a purported Taliban spokesman, told the AFP news agency that they will kill some of the hostages unless the Afghan government releases eight prisoners by 4:30 p.m. Monday Korean time (1200 GMT).
The Taliban have already killed the leader of the Christian group last week in an apparent demonstration of their hardball position on the issue.
The new list excluded prisoners in the custody of the U.S. military in the Central Asian country as demanded by the Kabul government, the source told The Korea Times on condition of anonymity.
But Afghan officials declined to confirm if they have received an amended list from the Taliban, he said.
The U.S.-backed Kabul administration had rejected an initial list of eight prisoners including high-profile Taliban commanders late last week because some members on the list are in the custody of the U.S. military waging war against the Islamic fundamentalists with other Western countries.
The U.S. government expressed full support for the hostage problem but has made it clear that there will be no deal at the cost of Taliban captives.
South Korea continued full-fledged efforts to rescue the kidnapped focusing on persuading the Afghan government to engage in the hostage negotiation with the Taliban in a more ``flexible'' manner.
Baek Jong-chun, a special envoy from South Korea, met Afghan President Hamid Karzai later in the day to deliver President Roh Moo-hyun's message and discuss ways of ending the crisis, presidential spokesman Cheon Ho-seon said.
Informed sources said Roh asked in his message to Karzai to positively consider releasing the Taliban rebels from prisons.
Baek, who arrived in Kabul on Friday, also offered a package of economic aid worth 3 billion won ($3 million) to the war-ravaged nation once Kabul accepts Seoul's request, they said.
``Both governments are understanding of their respective positions on the hostage issue, what they can do or what can't be done,'' a Cheong Wa Dae official said, asking to remain anonymous. ``Baek asked the Afghan government to exert more aggressive and creative efforts to free the Korean hostages as soon as possible based on the mutual understanding,'' he added.
In a statement issued after the meeting, Karzai assured the Korean interlocutor of his government's all-out help in resolving the hostage problem but fell short of releasing Taliban prisoners as demanded by hostage captors.
Karzai denounced the kidnapping of Koreans, particularly women, calling it ``shameful'' and ``un-Islamic'' against the Afghan culture and traditions and Islamic values.
``The Afghan government will try its best to resolve the crisis because South Korea has been providing a sizable amount of economic assistance to Afghanistan and maintaining good diplomatic relations (with Afghanistan),'' the Afghan leader said.
Diplomatic efforts are also in full swing.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it is closely working with the United States and other allies in Afghanistan in case of a possible hostage-for-prisoner swap required their approval.
Minister Song Min-soon talked to his U.S. counterpart Condoleezza Rice on Saturday over the phone to ask for Washington's help for an early release of the hostages, ministry officials said. He also had a telephone conversation with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
Meanwhile, South Korean officials said a package of medicine and food has been passed on to the captives through the Afghan government, and a second package of supplies from family members of the hostages is being planned.