“A Key Insurgent Tactic”
German held by Taliban pleads on TV
Another German taken hostage with Blechschmidt, Ruediger Diedrich, 43, had a heart attack, and was then finished off with gunshots. His body was found on July 21. Last month, a Taleban spokesman said they had killed the two engineers as Germany had ignored a demand to withdraw its 3,000 troops, although now it appears they’ve killed only one.
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP, Reuters, BBC) — A German engineer kidnapped by Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan more than a month ago was shown pleading for help Thursday in a videotape broadcast on a local television station.
Abductions have become a key insurgent tactic in recent months in trying to destabilize the country, targeting both Afghan officials and foreigners helping with reconstruction efforts. A group of 23 South Koreans was taken hostage last month. Two of the Koreans were killed, two were released and the rest remain captive.
“I am a prisoner of the Taliban,” said the man, who identified himself as Rudolf Blechschmidt. “My health condition is not good,” said the hostage, who was filmed sitting on rocks on a mountain. “We live in the mountains, 3000 meters high in a very bad condition, please help us,” he said. “the Taleban try to negotiate with the Afghan government, but the government will not talk with the Taliban and the Taliban tried to get in connection with the embassy to release us, but if the time is over they will kill us,” news agency Reuters quoted him as saying in the video.
The video was aired on private Afghan channel Tolo TV and that the hostage spoke in English.”I have been here for a long time with the Taliban in custody,” he said in English in the video. “I am a friend and partner of the people of Afghanistan. I ask the Afghan government, the German embassy in Kabul and German government to secure my release.”
The footage also showed four of his Afghan colleagues, one of whom asked the Afghan government and parliament to help release him.
“We Afghans ask [Afghan President Hamid] Karzai and his government to help us because of our children and for ourselves,” the Afghan hostage said while standing on a mountain with the three other Afghans.
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It’s a dam shame, but it’s not as if they didn’t know in advance that this was a possibly. The terrorists see the people there to help them as possible money makers. It’s not for ideological reasons, it’s for the money. Terrorists are savages.
August 23rd, 2007 at 2:28 amThere will be no peace with these animals until they are all killed.
Sorry for the hostages, but they must be considered collateral damage at the moment taken. Any creedence given the act of hostage taking only establishes it’s value to the animals.
August 23rd, 2007 at 4:19 amNo negotiations with terrorists. Find these people and rescue them…then publicly hang the scum that did it.
Don’t tell me that some Afghans don’t know where these people are? Offer them a reward for info.
August 23rd, 2007 at 6:28 am