Taliban – News Stories About Taliban - Page 57

Aug 19, 2007 6:49 PM CDT

Police Raid Frees Kabul Hostage

Kidnappers call themselves 'a special network,' police say they are not Taliban

(Newser) - Afghan police stormed a secret location in Kabul today and freed a German aid worker held by kidnappers this weekend, CNN reports. Her abductors had circulated a video of her asking for the release of unknown prisoners and pleading for her own freedom. The captors said only that they are...

Korean Hostage Talks Fail

Aug 18, 2007 11:46 AM CDT

Korean Hostage Talks Fail

Taliban says demands not met; group is considering the fate of 19 captives

(Newser) - As the 19 remaining Korean hostages await news of their fate, negotiations to secure their release have failed, according to a Taliban spokesman. The terror group says its principal demand—the liberation of insurgents being held by coalition forces—was not met; South Korean officials have insisted Seoul has no...

In Pakistan, a Birthday Marred by Violence

Aug 14, 2007 6:26 AM CDT

In Pakistan, a Birthday Marred by Violence

Nation turns 60 amid bomb attacks and political upheaval

(Newser) - Pakistan celebrates the 60th anniversary of its independence today at a moment plagued by violence and shadowed by political uncertainty, the Independent writes. A roadside bomb killed four civilians yesterday near the border with Afghanistan, where the Taliban is allegedly regrouping. Attacks have multiplied since July from tribal areas to...

Taliban Frees
2 South Korean Hostages

Aug 13, 2007 8:37 AM CDT

Taliban Frees 2 South Korean Hostages

Women in Red Cross custody after roadside hand-over

(Newser) - The Taliban freed two of the South Korean hostages abducted in Afghanistan today, releasing them to the Red Cross in Ghazni province, the Telegraph reports. A BBC reporter saw the two women, who were reported to be in "fair" health and were released after talks with South Korean negotiators....

Why Are We Losing Afghanistan?

Aug 12, 2007 4:24 PM CDT

Why Are We Losing Afghanistan?

Miscalculated and under-emphasized the country time and again

(Newser) - Critical misjudgments and a consistent refusal to commit resources undermined what appeared to be a US triumph in routing the Taliban in Afghanistan, the New York Times reports in a detailed analysis of how the "good war" seems to have gone bad. From Donald Rumsfeld’s early rebuff of...

Musharraf Talks at Peace Jirga

Aug 12, 2007 11:18 AM CDT

Musharraf Talks at Peace Jirga

General meets with Afghan and Pakistani leaders to discuss extremism

(Newser) - Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf today pledged to fight the "particularly dark form" of extremism that afflicts his country and Afghanistan, speaking to 600 tribal leaders from the two countries at the close of a peace jirga in Kabul, the AP reports. He said the rise of militancy is preventing...

Taliban to Free
2 Hostages

Aug 11, 2007 1:41 PM CDT

Taliban to Free 2 Hostages

Militant group will release sick women from captivity, report says

(Newser) - The Taliban will release two South Korean hostages who have become sick after nearly a month of captivity in Afghanistan. The announcement came during talks between the militant group and South Korean emissaries, but hasn't been confirmed by international groups monitoring the situation.

South Korea Begins Taliban Hostage Talks

Aug 10, 2007 5:01 PM CDT

South Korea Begins Taliban Hostage Talks

Hostages said to be safe while negotiations continue

(Newser) - A South Korean team began face-to-face negotiations with the Taliban today, hoping to secure the lives of 21 Korean aid workers abducted last month. The meeting is taking place in an Afghan government-controlled zone where the Taliban has been guaranteed temporary safe passage. Seoul has already cautioned that it doesn't...

Musharraf Backs Down From Emergency Rule

Aug 9, 2007 12:53 PM CDT

Musharraf Backs Down From Emergency Rule

Under pressure, ruling general instead moves toward elections

(Newser) - After wide speculation that he would invoke emergency measures to deal with mounting violence and instability, Pakistan's president put out word today that he will stay the course on elections, Reuters reports. Beset by Islamic militants, constitutional challenges and declining poll numbers, Pervez Musharraf was thought to be on the...

Musharraf Bails on Karzai Meeting

Aug 8, 2007 2:16 PM CDT

Musharraf Bails on Karzai Meeting

Pakistan chief snubs Afghan jirga; US claims 'good reasons'

(Newser) - Pervez Musharraf has backed out of meetings with his Afghan counterpart in an abrupt snub that initially shocked Washington. Musharraf told Hamid Karzai he has other “engagements" at home in Pakistan and can't attend the meeting of tribal leaders intended to discuss military violence. The US is looking into...

Bush, Karzai Diverge on Iran

Aug 6, 2007 4:14 PM CDT

Bush, Karzai Diverge on Iran

Leaders discuss regional stability

(Newser) - President Bush and Hamid Karzai emerged from today's Camp David meetings together, but they've clearly parted ways on the Taliban, Al-Qaeda, and Iran's role in Afghanistan. Bush put the onus on Iran to demonstrate that it's not a "destabilizing force," the Washington Post reports, but Karzai is already...

Hostage: We Don't Want to Die

Aug 6, 2007 5:45 AM CDT

Hostage: We Don't Want to Die

Medicines delivered to South Korean captives

(Newser) - Afghan doctors yesterday delivered medicines to 21 South Korean hostages held by Taliban rebels as one of the captives pleaded for their lives in an emotional radio interview. "We are all sick and weak," a nurse told Voice of America, pleading with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon to...

Karzai to Meet With Musharraf

Aug 5, 2007 6:29 PM CDT

Karzai to Meet With Musharraf

Feuding leaders will discuss quest for insurgents operating along shared border

(Newser) - Facing mounting US pressure to extinguish the Taliban and capture Osama bin Laden, dueling presidents Pervez Musharraf and Hamid Karzai will meet this week to discuss anti-terrorism efforts, CNN reports. Karzai has criticized his Pakistani counterpart for failed efforts to crack down on terrorism, but today the Afghan leader praised...

Seoul Pleads for Taliban Talks

Aug 4, 2007 3:55 PM CDT

Seoul Pleads for Taliban Talks

Delegation arrives in Afghanistan while Afghans, Taliban search for venue

(Newser) - South Korean officials are in Afghanistan seeking direct talks with the Taliban, Reuters reports, as the terrorist group and the Afghan government bicker over a venue for their own negotiations to free the 21 remaining Korean hostages. Two male members of the church group have been killed by the kidnappers.

Seoul to Taliban: Our Hands Are Tied

Aug 3, 2007 4:38 PM CDT

Seoul to Taliban: Our Hands Are Tied

Frustrated South Korean govt. lacks authority to satisfy kidnappers' demands

(Newser) - South Korean officials on a desperate mission to Afghanistan are attempting to impress upon the Taliban that they cannot single-handedly meet the organization's demands. The delegation has been in contact with the kidnappers in an efforts to negotiate the release of 21 South Korean hostages, Reuters reports, but it can't...

Seoul Seeks Direct Talks With Taliban

Aug 2, 2007 9:06 PM CDT

Seoul Seeks Direct Talks With Taliban

South Korean delegation heads to DC to seek help in hostage crisis

(Newser) - South Korean delegates arrived in Afghanistan today to press for an end to the 2-week hostage crisis that has left two dead, Reuters reports. Seoul has asked for direct talks with the Taliban, which continues to hold 21 church workers, most of them women. But South Korea is powerless to...

Body of Second Korean Hostage Found

Jul 31, 2007 4:35 AM CDT

Body of Second Korean Hostage Found

More will die unless prisoners are freed, kidnappers warn

(Newser) - Afghan police have found the body of a second Korean hostage killed by the Taliban, Reuters reports. The man was shot in the head, and his body found in a clover field close to the spot where 23 Korean missionaries were kidnapped last week. The kidnappers have threatened to kill...

Taliban Claims Second Hostage Death

Jul 30, 2007 1:56 PM CDT

Taliban Claims Second Hostage Death

(Newser) - The Taliban has killed a second South Korean hostage, a spokesman for the extremist group told CNN in a telephone interview today, adding that the corpse was dropped off in the province of Ghazni in central Afghanistan. Officials have not located any bodies in that area. The militants already murdered...

Red Mosque Inspires Clone

Jul 30, 2007 8:46 AM CDT

Red Mosque Inspires Clone

Pakistani Militants take over another mosque, name it after scene of bloody siege

(Newser) - The Red Mosque has become a franchise: pro-Taliban militants have occupied a different shrine in northwestern Pakistan and renamed it after the Islamabad mosque where 102 people died after a protracted siege. The fighters also promise to build a girls' seminary to replace the one that was destroyed by Pakistani...

Afghan Hostage Talks Stall as Threats Escalate

Jul 29, 2007 11:51 AM CDT

Afghan Hostage Talks Stall as Threats Escalate

Karzai blasts Taliban, saying abductions are 'against Islam'

(Newser) - The Taliban will kill 22 South Korean hostages tomorrow if the Afghan government does not release insurgent prisoners, a spokesman for the kidnappers said today. The Taliban leadership council issued the most recent death threat since the abductions Wednesday, signaling its seriousness, Reuters reports. And Afghan and foreign troops are...