Taliban extend deadline for 23 Korean hostages

KABUL,Afghanistan-The Taliban kidnappers of 23 Korean hostages on Sunday extended the deadline for the South Korean government to agree to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan by 24 hours."The Taliban have extended the deadline for another 24 hours" until to 1430 GMT (10:30 a.m. EDT) Monday,spokesman Qari Mohammad Yousuf told Reuters by telephone from an unknown location.
Afghan army and police surrounded the Taliban kidnappers while tribal elders tried to mediate between the militants and government negotiators, a Kabul-based Western security analyst said.The 23 hostages belong to the "Saemmul Church" in Bundang,a city outside South Korea's capital,Seoul.Most of them are in their 20s and 30s,and include nurses and English teachers.Yousuf earlier had said insurgents would start killing the hostages if South Korea did not agree to withdraw its 200 military engineers and medics by 1430 GMT on Sunday and the Afghan government did not free Taliban prisoners.The South Korean government has said it will withdraw its troops at the end of this year as planned.
"Afghan forces have surrounded the location of the kidnappers,"the security analyst said. "They have no way to escape."Afghan government negotiators were in the Qarabagh district of Ghazni province where the Koreans were seized and tribal elders were mediating with the group of around 70 Taliban kidnappers, he said.But Afghan forces were also poised to strike."They are awaiting orders to assault suspected locations,"the Defense Ministry in Afghanistan said in a statement."The operation will be launched if Defense Ministry authorities deem it necessary."
Taliban spokesmen Yousuf said fighters were holding the captives at different locations and any attempt to free them by force would put the Koreans' lives at risk.
To read more go to:
http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/07/22/afghan.hostages.reut/index.html
As in the days of Noah...