Pakistani Taliban militants have freed a Chinese engineer held captive for nearly six months, officials said yesterday, as fears rose for the safety of an abducted American threatened with imminent death by his kidnappers.
It was not immediately clear what prompted Long Xiaowei’s (龍小偉) release, including whether a ransom was paid or militants were freed in exchange, but the news that he was safe was a rare bright spot in a month of heightened security concerns for foreigners in Pakistan.
Long’s release came days before a visit to China by Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari.
Earlier this month, a Polish geologist held by Taliban fighters was apparently beheaded on a video obtained by news media and authorities and believed by the Polish government to be authentic.
On Friday, the kidnappers of American UN official John Solecki threatened to kill him within 72 hours and issued a 20-second video of a blindfolded Solecki saying he was “sick and in trouble.”
The abductions have underscored the overall deteriorating security conditions in Pakistan, a critical US ally in the fight against terrorism, as it battles a Taliban insurgency in its northwest regions bordering Afghanistan. On Saturday, a US missile strike on a compound in the area where dozens of Taliban militants had gathered killed 27 people, intelligence officials said.
China is also a major ally and longtime financial supporter of Pakistan, and the Chinese foreign ministry said Beijing attached high importance to the case of the kidnapped engineer.
The engineer appeared in good condition and expected to go back to China after a medical checkup, China’s Foreign Ministry said.
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