(AKI) - Pakistani militants on Monday said they had extended the deadline for the execution of a senior United Nations official kidnapped in the west of the country in early February. The group, calling itself the Baluchistan Liberation United Front, on Friday said it would kill American John Solecki in 72 hours, but a spokesman told the media on Monday it would extend the deadline for the government to accede to its demands.The group reportedly told the Quetta Press Club on Monday that the deadline for Solecki's execution had been extended for a few days.
Solecki, the head of the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in Quetta, was kidnapped on 2 February after gunmen ambushed his car and shot dead his driver, Syed Hashim Raza.
Pakistani media said police were searching for Solecki in Dalbadin, Naukandi, and areas along the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The Taliban is active in the region which has also seen unrest from groups demanding greater local autonomy.
The BLUF has demanded UN intervention to secure the release of 141 women held in Pakistani prisons and resolve the issue of Baluchi independence. Solecki was apparently shown in a video aired by Geo News on Friday. The video showed the face of a blindfolded man, apparently that of John Solecki.