The seven hostages were handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross in two separate exchanges close to the central Afghan city of Ghazni, Red Cross officials and an Associated Press reporter said. The freed hostages did not speak to reporters.
Read the full story here.
Labels: Asian, Asian American, South Korea, South Korean Hostage Crisis, Taliban, World
Well it’s official - the South Korean hostages being held in Afghanistan are set to go free in the next few days. According to the agreement which you can read more about here at the Washington Post, the 19 remaining hostages will go free based upon South Korea pulling 200 noncombat troops out of Afghanistan as well as banning missionary work by Korean Christians in the country.
image sourceLabels: Asian, Asian American, South Korea, South Korean Hostage Crisis, Taliban, World
Kim Gina, 32, and Kim Kyung-ja, 37 were two of the remaining 21 hostages freed and could be back home as early as Wednesday.
Labels: Asian, Asian American, Government, Korean, South Korea, South Korean Hostage Crisis, Taliban, World
Apparently there has been contact with at least one and maybe more of the 21 South Korean hostages:
South Korean officials have made direct contact with at least one of 21 South Korean hostages in Afghanistan, an official said Monday, as the Afghan and U.S. governments refuse to swap Taliban prisoners for hostages.
“During a telephone call between our officials at the (Korean) embassy in Afghanistan and the Taliban on Saturday, our officials were allowed to speak to one of the hostages,” an official at the South Korean Foreign Ministry told reporters, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The official refused to identify who the hostage was or what they had discussed, citing safety concerns.
A self-claimed commander of the Taliban, who declined to identify himself, later told Yonhap News Agency that the militants had allowed three female hostages to speak with South Korean officials in Korean.
Read more here at THE HANKYOREH
Labels: Asian, Asian American, South Korea, South Korean Hostage Crisis, Taliban, World
While the details are minimal, it’s being rumored that a new group from South Korea (ambassadors and government officials) will be planning to meet with the Taliban to discuss the release of the 21 remaining South Korean hostages in Afghanistan - there on an aid mission and then kidnapped on July 19th in the central Ghazni province. It is hoped that the meeting will deter any more executions, two of which have already been carried out, and that at least some of the aid workers can be released, two of whom are being reported as being seriously ill. Read more from RTE News, Al Jazeera, and the People’s Daily Online.
More links to news about the Korean hostages in Afghanistan:
*Image from RTE News*
Labels: Asian, Asian American, Government, Law, News, South Korea, Taliban, World
