Taliban Claim to Kill 2nd Christian Korean Hostage
Pastor Dale Morgan
Jul 30, 4:36 PM ED*T**
Taliban Claim to Kill 2nd Christian Korean Hostage*
By NOOR KHAN
Associated Press Writer
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) -- A purported Taliban spokesman claimed the
hardline militia killed a second South Korean hostage Monday because the
Afghan government failed to release imprisoned insurgents. Afghan
officials said they hadn't recovered a body and couldn't confirm the claim.
The Al-Jazeera television network, meanwhile, showed footage that it
said was seven female hostages in Afghanistan.
Militant spokesman Qari Yousef Ahmadi said senior Taliban leaders
decided to kill the male captive because the government had not met
Taliban demands to trade prisoners for the Christian volunteers, who
were in their 12th day of captivity.
"The Kabul and Korean governments are lying and cheating. They did not
meet their promise of releasing Taliban prisoners," Ahmadi, who claims
to speak for the Taliban, said by phone from an undisclosed location.
"The Taliban warns the government if the Afghan government won't release
Taliban prisoners then at any time the Taliban could kill another Korean
hostage."
Ghazni Gov. Marajudin Pathan said officials were aware of the Taliban's
claim but hadn't recovered a body. He said police were looking but he
couldn't say when they might find anything.
"Ghazni is a very vast area, so we really don't know where the body is,"
Pathan said.
Al-Jazeera showed shaky footage of what it said were several South
Korean hostages. It did not say how it obtained the video, whose
authenticity could not immediately be verified.
Some seven female hostages, heads veiled in accordance with the Islamic
law enforced by the Taliban, were seen crouching in the dark, eyes
closed or staring at the ground, expressionless.
The hostages did not speak as they were filmed by the hand-held camera.
The Taliban kidnapped 23 South Koreans riding on a bus through Ghazni
province on the Kabul-Kandahar highway on July 19, the largest group of
foreign hostages taken in Afghanistan since the 2001 U.S.-led invasion.
The Taliban has set several deadlines for the Koreans' lives. Last
Wednesday the insurgents killed their first hostage, a male leader of
the group.
The body of pastor Bae Hyung-kyu arrived back in South Korea on Monday,
where the families of the remaining hostages pleaded for their loved
ones' release.
Relatives have gathered at Saemmul Community Church in Bundang, just
outside Seoul. They waited anxiously for developments - sharing prayers,
meals and sleepless nights as they followed 24-hour television newscasts.
Seo Jung-bae, 59, whose daughter and son were among the hostages,
appealed to the Taliban.
"Please, please send my children back so I can hold them in my arms," he
told The Associated Press, fighting back tears in a plea to the captors.
"Our families are the same. Your family is precious, so is mine."
Speaking from an emergency center set up by the church, he said his
children had traveled to the country to assist Afghans in need. "They
went there to help, thinking they (Afghans) are their friends."
It's not clear if the Afghan government would consider releasing any
militant prisoners.
In March, President Hamid Karzai approved a deal that saw five captive
Taliban fighters freed for the release of Italian reporter Daniele
Mastrogiacomo. Karzai, who was criticized by the United States and
European capitals over the exchange, called the trade a one-time deal.
On Sunday, Karzai and other Afghan officials tried to shame the Taliban
into releasing the female captives by appealing to a tradition of
cultural hospitality and chivalry. They called the kidnapping of women
"unIslamic."
On Monday, South Korean officials changed their estimate of the number
of women captives to 16, down from earlier reports of 18.
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Associated Press writer Amir Shah contributed to this report from Kabul.