Deadline moved for UN hostages
2004-11-03 10:03
Kabul - Militants holding three United Nations workers hostage in Afghanistan extended the deadline for their execution to later on Wednesday, saying they wanted to allow more time for negotiations.
"The deadline has been extended to this evening," a spokesperson for the Jaishul-Muslimeen, Syed Khaleed, told AFP by phone from a secret location. The original deadline had been midday on Wednesday.
Khaleed did not give an exact time for the revised deadline.
"Our leaders decided in a council (meeting) to extend the deadline up to this evening to give enough time for the ongoing negotiations," he said.
"There are people talking with our leaders, whether those people are talking on behalf of the UN or the government or both of them, I cannot say."
Jaishul Muslimeen, an apparent Taliban splinter group, had threatened to kill the three hostages - a woman from northern Ireland, a woman from Kosovo, and a Filipino man - unless foreign forces and the UN quit Afghanistan and the United States releases all Taliban prisoners.
The trio had been working for the United Nations on Afghanistan's first presidential election when they were snatched from their vehicle at gunpoint on a busy Kabul road last Thursday.