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KABUL: Five tribal elders taken hostage by Taliban militants last month in Ghazni province, managed to escape, local officials said Friday.
Ahmad Khan Sirat, provincial police spokesman, said that the tribal elders escaped from captivity in the Moqor district. They were taken hostage in Qarabagh district.
Separately, Abdul Malek Habibi, a tribal elder in Ghazni said that the hostages managed to escape at 01:00am in Khozi village of Moqor district and informed him of their safety after going to a police office.
The five tribal elders were taken hostage by Taliban last month when they were trying to convince the insurgents to release a number of farmers taken by the militants in Tamki area of Qarabagh district.
“These persons are part of 30 tribal elders in Moqor and Qarabagh districts. They had gone to Taliban for mediation about the release of some farmers who were in Taliban’s captivity. They went back to Jaghoori and Qarabagh districts, but Taliban took these five as hostage,” Habibi said.
This comes after Taliban insurgents took 11 civilians hostage in the districts of Jaghoori and Qarabagh earlier this week.
Aref Bahonar, Jaghoori district governor said that most of the 11 civilians were taken by Maulavi Ayyoub, Taliban’s shadow governor for Qarabagh.
Taliban did not comment on the incidents.
