Islamabad/Lahore: A hitherto unheard of
militant group called the Asian Tigers on Monday issued a video of
two top former ISI officials and a journalist whom it claimed
to have kidnapped in Pakistan`s volatile tribal belt.
The video, which was aired by Geo News channel,
featured former Inter-Services Intelligence official Khalid
Khwaja, Col (retired) Imam alias Sultan Amir Tarar and Asad
Qureshi, a British journalist of Pakistani-origin.
The three men had gone missing after travelling to
North Waziristan on March 25 to interview Taliban leaders.
In the video, Col Imam and Khwaja spoke about their
service in the military and the ISI.
They claimed they had been told to go to the tribal
belt by former army chief Gen Mirza Aslam Beg, former ISI
chief Lt Gen Hamid Gul and one Col Sajjad of the ISI.
The video showed Asad Qureshi as saying: "I`m an
England (sic) citizen. Please have them set me free. I am
being detained by Asian Tigers."
The three men were filmed sitting in front of a
white piece of cloth. An Urdu newspaper was placed on their
chest. Geo News said an unnamed spokesman for the Asian
Tigers had claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of the
trio.
The three men had travelled from Kohat district in
northwest Pakistan to Mirali, one of the main towns of North
Waziristan, on March 25. They went missing the next day.
The three men, who were working on a documentary,
were reportedly invited to the tribal areas by Punjabi Taliban
militants.
Geo News quoted its sources as saying that the
abductors planned to seek money from the British government
for the release of Qureshi.
The kidnappers also want to exchange the two former
ISI officials for arrested militants, the sources were quoted
as saying.
In Lahore, Khwaja`s wife Shamama told PTI that she
had information that a militant named Usman Punjabi was behind
the kidnapping.
PTI
