Al Jazeera: Hostages released

2004-11-05 17:34

Baghdad - Arabic television station Al-Jazeera said on Friday a Filipino and a Nepalese kidnapped earlier in the week have been released by their captors.

Nepalese officials confirmed the report but the Filipinos said they could not.

The Doha, Qatar-based satellite network did not give a source for its information, saying the release of the two hostages comes after the wife of one hostage appealed to kidnappers for his release on the occasion of holy Ramadan.

Earlier in the day, Nepal's foreign minister announced the release of Inus Dewari, 27, who had been abducted along with Filipino accountant Robert Tarongoy, an unidentified American colleague and three other Iraqis by armed gunmen from their compound in Baghdad on Monday.

Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat said Dewari's Saudi employers had assured him that Dewari was safe and had been taken to the airport. It was unclear when he was released and who his captors were.

All six men had worked for the Saudi Arabian Trading and Construction Co, a Riyadh-based company that provided catering and foodstuffs to the Iraqi army and others. Two of the Iraqi guards have already been released.

There have been no claims of responsibility and no demands made for the remaining hostages' release.

Government officials in Manila said on Friday they have no information about Tarongoy being freed and are checking on the reports.

Earlier in the day, Tarongoy's wife in Manila made a plea for his release and reminded his abductors that there are no longer any Filipino troops in the war-torn nation.

'Deep respect for Muslims

"Robert is a good man with deep respect for all Muslims," said Ivy Tarongoy. "My country, the Philippines, has no troops in Iraq. My husband and I wish only the best for the Iraqi people.

"I ask that he be freed as a symbol of goodwill and friendship between the peoples of Iraq and the Philippines," she told The Associated Press. "I do not see any more possible grievances that the kidnappers may have against the Philippine government."

It was the second abduction of a Filipino worker in Iraq. More than 4 000 Filipinos work in US military camps across Iraq, mostly as maintenance workers and cooks because of the high wages. The Philippines have announced a ban on work in Iraq, but about 2 000 Filipinos have entered Iraq since the ban was imposed.

In July, insurgents snatched truck driver Angelo dela Cruz and persuaded Manila to recall its small peacekeeping force early in exchange for his life. The move was sharply criticised by Washington and its allies but hailed in the Philippines.

- AP