Two S Korean hostages released

时间：2007-08-14 06:01:42

（单词翻译:单击）

KABUL, Aug. 14 - Two South Korean female hostages were freed in central Afghanistan by Taliban militants1 on Monday afternoon, the first significant development in an enduring hostage crisis, officials said.

 

After a longtime ordeal2 in Taliban custody3, the two hostages had been released and met South Korean officials in Ghazni city, the capital of Ghazni province, Shirin Mangal, provincial4 government spokesman, told the media.

 

Meanwhile, South Korean Foreign Ministry5 spokesman Cho Hee-yong confirmed that two hostages, who are Kim Gina, 32, and Kim Kyung-ja, 37, have been released and moved to a safe area.

 

South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun vowed6 that his government would spare no efforts in releasing the other hostages.

 

Media reports said the two women would be flown back to South Korean soon after being medically checked.

 

TV pictures showed the hostages, who were wearing scarves, walked into a white vehicle of the International Committee for the Red Cross by themselves after they were released by Taliban militants.

 

A Taliban spokesman, Qari Yousuf Ahmadi, once said the two hostages had been freed on Saturday night, but obviously he gave wrong information.

 

On Sunday night, Ghazni provincial governor Merajuddin Pattan said the hostages would be released on Monday morning, but the releasing did not occur until the afternoon.

 

The Taliban said the two female were freed as the Taliban leadership wanted to show a "good gesture" toward South Korean authorities.

 

Meanwhile, Taliban spokesman Ahmadi insisted the remaining 19 hostages would not be released if the Taliban's demands for the liberty of some Taliban prisoners were not met.

 

Several South Korean diplomats7 and two Taliban delegates, who are Mullah Bashir and Mullah Nasratullah, have carried out face-to-face talks on the hostages in Ghazni city since Friday night. The talks apparently8 would continue.

 

A total of 23 South Koreans were kidnapped by Taliban militants on a road in Ghazni province on July 19.

 

Taliban rebels shot dead two male hostages on July 25 and July 30 separately to press Afghan and South Korean authorities to meet their demands.

 

The Afghan government has refused to release Taliban prisoners as the Taliban has demanded to exchange for the hostages.

 

Taliban militants have carried out kidnappings in Afghanistan over the past two years frequently, and some hostages were killed.

 
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1 militants 3fa50c1e4338320d8495907fdc5bdbaf     
激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )
参考例句：
  • The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
  • Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。
2 ordeal B4Pzs     
n.苦难经历，（尤指对品格、耐力的）严峻考验
参考例句：
  • She managed to keep her sanity throughout the ordeal.在那场磨难中她始终保持神志正常。
  • Being lost in the wilderness for a week was an ordeal for me.在荒野里迷路一星期对我来说真是一场磨难。
3 custody Qntzd     
n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留
参考例句：
  • He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
  • He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。
4 provincial Nt8ye     
adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人
参考例句：
  • City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
  • Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。
5 ministry kD5x2     
n.(政府的)部；牧师
参考例句：
  • They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
  • We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。
6 vowed 6996270667378281d2f9ee561353c089     
起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）
参考例句：
  • He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
  • I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。
7 diplomats ccde388e31f0f3bd6f4704d76a1c3319     
n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人
参考例句：
  • These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
  • The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》
8 apparently tMmyQ     
adv.显然地；表面上，似乎
参考例句：
  • An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
  • He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

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