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Published 06:18 IST, September 1st 2024

4 Including an Army Officer Freed from Former Stronghold of Pakistani Taliban: Pak Military

Pakistan's military has claimed that four abducted, including an army officer have been from the former stronghold of Pakistani Taliban, by the insurgents.

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Representative Image | Image: AP

Dera Ismail Khan (Pakistan): Insurgents have freed four people, including an army officer who was abducted three days ago from a former stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban, the military said.

Lt Col Khalid Ameer was seized on Wednesday while he was sitting in a mosque to receive mourners after attending his father's funeral, according to local police.

The “unconditional release” of Ameer and three of his relatives on Saturday was secured due to the role played by tribal elders and “all the abductees have safely returned home,” the military said in a statement without giving any further details.

No one claimed responsibility for the kidnappings in Dera Ismail Khan, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in northwest Pakistan. However, in video statements released hours after they were kidnapped, two of the abductees said they were in the custody of Pakistani Taliban. They also urged the government to accept their abductors' demands, although these were unclear.

Though the Pakistani Taliban often targets security forces, such kidnappings and releases of abductees are rare. The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, are separate from but allied to the Afghan Taliban, and they have been emboldened since the Afghan Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in 2021. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Republic and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Updated 06:18 IST, September 1st 2024

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