YONHAP NEWS

(LEAD) Negotiations continue past deadline for Korean hostages in Afghanistan

By Sohn Suk-joo and Byun Duk-kun
SEOUL, July 27 (Yonhap) -- South Korea is continuing to negotiate with the Taliban for the release of 22 South Korean hostages despite the passing of the latest 4:30 p.m. (0730 GMT) deadline, which the insurgents said would not be extended.

   Seoul officials said various "contacts" with the kidnappers were still underway, and they hope to have continued contacts past the deadline.

   China's Xinhua news agency cited a Taliban commander as saying that negotiations were still going on and the 22 hostages were still safe after the expiration of the deadline.

   Qari Yousaf Ahmadi, a spokesman for the Taliban, earlier in the day said the Taliban militants would kill all of the hostages unless the Afghan government released Taliban prisoners by the deadline.

   The Taliban spokesman has extended deadlines several times since the kidnapping of the Koreans last Thursday from a bus that was traveling to the southern Afghan city of Kandahar from the capital Kabul, but this time he said the deadline would not be extended.
In an exclusive interview with Yonhap News Agency, Ahmadi said, "We killed one South Korean hostage in order to pressure the Afghan government to release our Taliban colleague prisoners." He was referring to the death of a 42-year-old pastor, who was leading the 23-member aid mission to the Central Asian nation.

   The body of Bae Hyung-kyu was found in central Afghanistan Wednesday. It is expected to arrive in South Korea via a U.S. military base in Bagram, about 60 kilometers northwest of Kabul.

   In an exclusive interview with Yonhap via telephone, the Taliban spokesman claimed the hostages were detained in groups of two at 11 places, not three places as reported previously.

   He denied reports of internal feuding by the Taliban, insisting the United States and other Western governments and media were launching a propaganda campaign against the Taliban.

   Some analysts and media reports attributed the protracted negotiations to the conflicting attitudes of Taliban factions, with some factions insisting on the release of their colleagues and others ready to release the Koreans in return for ransom.

   Confusing reports Wednesday about the release of eight hostages, which turned out to be untrue, may have given the impression of conflicting positions within the Taliban. The reports said the eight were on the verge of being handed over to the Afghan authorities at that time.
Ahmadi, said to be representing the hard-liners, denied reports the Taliban wants a ransom, saying, "The Afghan government has refused to release the prisoners we gave a list of. We don't demand money."
On the health conditions of the kidnapped, he said, "It is true that some of the hostages are sick. We have only two types of painkillers and a food shortage is a problem."
Some fear the conflicting interests of the kidnappers may result in the deaths of more hostages or prolong the negotiations.

   In March, it took about 15 days for the Italian government to secure the release of an Italian journalist taken hostage in Afghanistan.

   At that time, Afghan President Hamid Karzai was criticized by the U.S. for the release of five Taliban prisoners in exchange for the reporter, and he called the trade a "one-time deal."
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