Post by jimpres on Feb 7, 2009 8:40:06 GMT -7
Page last updated at 15:25 GMT, Saturday, 7 February 2009
Pakistan Taleban 'kill hostage'
A Taleban group in Pakistan is reportedly claiming to have killed a Polish engineer, Piotr Stanczak, who was kidnapped in September last year.
Reports quote a Taleban spokesman as saying he was killed after a deadline expired for the Pakistani government to free captured militants.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Warsaw had received "informal confirmation" that the man was killed.
Pakistani security officials said they could not confirm the Taleban claim.
A Taleban spokesman said Mr Stanczak was beheaded after a deadline expired on Friday for the release of a number of militants in government hands, Reuters reported.
"We have killed the man after authorities refused to release our colleagues," the spokesman, calling himself Mohammed, told Reuters.
Pakistani security officials said the Taleban now wanted money for the return of Mr Stanczak's body.
Growing insurgency
He was kidnapped by gunmen on 28 September while visiting one of his company's sites in north-west Pakistan, about 65km (40 miles) west of the capital, Islamabad.
Mr Stanczak's company, Geofizyka Krakow, was doing surveying work for a Pakistani oil company.
His Pakistani driver, bodyguard and translator were killed in the attack.
The Pakistani government had been in negotiations with the Taleban for Mr Stanczak's release.
"From Pakistan we have an informal confirmation that this tragedy in fact took place," Mr Tusk told Poland's TVN24 news channel.
"We have used all political, operational, logistical means to prevent this tragedy," he said.
Pakistan has been fighting a growing insurgency by Taleban militants in its north-west region bordering Afghanistan.
A number of foreigners have been kidnapped, including Afghan and Iranian diplomats and two Chinese engineers (one of whom later escaped). An American official with the UN refugee agency based in Quetta, in western Pakistan, was kidnapped last week.
Pakistan Taleban 'kill hostage'
A Taleban group in Pakistan is reportedly claiming to have killed a Polish engineer, Piotr Stanczak, who was kidnapped in September last year.
Reports quote a Taleban spokesman as saying he was killed after a deadline expired for the Pakistani government to free captured militants.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Warsaw had received "informal confirmation" that the man was killed.
Pakistani security officials said they could not confirm the Taleban claim.
A Taleban spokesman said Mr Stanczak was beheaded after a deadline expired on Friday for the release of a number of militants in government hands, Reuters reported.
"We have killed the man after authorities refused to release our colleagues," the spokesman, calling himself Mohammed, told Reuters.
Pakistani security officials said the Taleban now wanted money for the return of Mr Stanczak's body.
Growing insurgency
He was kidnapped by gunmen on 28 September while visiting one of his company's sites in north-west Pakistan, about 65km (40 miles) west of the capital, Islamabad.
Mr Stanczak's company, Geofizyka Krakow, was doing surveying work for a Pakistani oil company.
His Pakistani driver, bodyguard and translator were killed in the attack.
The Pakistani government had been in negotiations with the Taleban for Mr Stanczak's release.
"From Pakistan we have an informal confirmation that this tragedy in fact took place," Mr Tusk told Poland's TVN24 news channel.
"We have used all political, operational, logistical means to prevent this tragedy," he said.
Pakistan has been fighting a growing insurgency by Taleban militants in its north-west region bordering Afghanistan.
A number of foreigners have been kidnapped, including Afghan and Iranian diplomats and two Chinese engineers (one of whom later escaped). An American official with the UN refugee agency based in Quetta, in western Pakistan, was kidnapped last week.
