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Taliban Free 63 Diminers Kidnapped in Herat
[Tolo News] Officials in Herat
...a venerable old Persian-speaking city in western Afghanistan, populated mostly by Tadjiks, which is why it's not as blood-soaked as areas controlled by Pashtuns...
province announced Tuesday night that 63 employees of a demining firm who were taken hostage earlier in the day by gunnies were released after successful negotiations were made between their captors, local tribal elders and security officials.

The Taliban was said to have kidnapped the 63 employees, who were disabling mines and Explosive Remnants of War (ERWs) around Herat, early Tuesday morning. The incident took place in the Pashtun Zarghund District.

"Insurgents approached a mine clearance site this morning, while the workers were getting ready to start their work," a local official told TOLOnews on condition of anonymity.

The hostages were reportedly employees of Halo Trust, a non-governmental organization working throughout Afghanistan and other conflict zones around the world.

More than 10 gunnies were said to have arrived at the site and forced the workers into vehicles, which then drove them to some holy man's guesthouse an undisclosed location.

What exactly led to the deal being brokered between security officials, tribal elders and the kidnappers remains unknown. And there have been no reports of casualties.
Posted by: Fred 2014-01-22
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=384074