Taliban insurgents said on Sunday there was still no agreement on where to hold talks with South Korean diplomats seeking the release of 21 of their compatriots kidnapped more than two weeks ago, and issued fresh threats, with a spokesman saying more could be murdered at “any time”. The Taliban want negotiations in areas they control or with United Nations guarantees for their safety if held elsewhere. Taliban spokesman Yousuf Ahmadi said the killing of the hostages was “inevitable” because no one had contacted the Taliban regarding their fate in a while. “Since we’ve not set a deadline for them they could be killed at any moment, any time,” he said.
The Taliban are threatening to kill the rest of the hostages if the Afghan government fails to release rebel prisoners. President Hamid Karzai has refused to free jailed Taliban, saying that would encourage more kidnappings.