DATE=12/29/1999
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=KANDAHAR-HIJACK (L-UPDATE)
NUMBER=2-257600
BYLINE=AYAZ GUL
DATELINE=KANDAHAR
INTERNET=YES
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Afghanistan's Taleban movement says hijackers
of an Indian airliner have dropped their demands for a
200-million-dollars ransom and the body of a Kashmiri
leader who was killed in India. Ayaz Gul reports from
the southern Afghan city of Kandahar, this is the
first breakthrough in negotiations aimed at securing
the release of 155-hostages on board the Indian plane.
TEXT: Taleban Foreign Minister Wakil Ahmed says the
hijackers dropped the two demands following a request
by the Taleban.
Mr. Ahmed told reporters at the Kandahar airport,
negotiations between Indian diplomats and the
hijackers continued all day Wednesday. He says the
hijackers appear firm on their third and final demand,
asking India to release 35-Kashmiri militants, and a
Pakistani religious leader (Masood Azhar).
When the hijackers increased their demands Tuesday,
they insisted on 200-million dollars ransom, the
release of their colleagues held in Indian jails, and
the body of a Kashmiri militant who was allegedly
killed by Indian forces five-years ago.
Calling hijacking un-Islamic, the Taleban minister
says his country wants a peaceful and quick end to the
hostage crisis. Otherwise, he says Taleban
authorities will force the hijackers to leave
Afghanistan. He did not elaborate.
Meanwhile, the United Nations has set up temporary
camps at the Kandahar airport to provide aid to those
aboard the hijacked plane. A U-N official says these
camps can care for about 100-people and doctors and
nurses are available to treat the hostages.
No passengers have been released since an Indian
delegation arrived in the city Monday and began talks
with the gunmen by radio.
Although there have been no reports of violence since
the plane landed in Kandahar, those on board are said
to be suffering the effects of six-days of
confinement. Conditions on the plane improved
slightly late Tuesday, after repairs to the engine
that controls the plane's power and ventilation
systems.
Tuesday, several Kandahar airport workers entered the
hijacked plane to clean it. They spent 25-minutes
clearing out empty food containers.
The airport workers say the passengers appeared pale
and tired, and some asked where they were, apparently
not realizing the jet was in Kandahar. The workers
saw several passengers playing chess and cards.
Others were reading newspapers.
Guarding the entrance to the plane was a masked
hijacker armed with a pistol and a grenade. The
workers say three additional masked hijackers, armed
with pistols, were patrolling the passenger cabin.
One of the workers said the hijacker who seemed to be
in charge remained in the plane's cockpit. The
workers say they did not see any dead or wounded.
The hijackers seized the plane Friday during a
scheduled flight from Nepal to India. The plane made
stops in India, Pakistan, and the United Arab Emirates
before landing in Kandahar in southern Afghanistan.
(SIGNED)
NEB/AG/RAE
29-Dec-1999 11:59 AM EDT (29-Dec-1999 1659 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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