Pakistan – Mingora: On Sunday the Pakistani officials kidnapped in Swat valley by Taliban fighters, where the government is seeking peace by offering to allow Islamic sharia law.
Muslim Khan, a militant and spokesman for the Taliban. said that "We have released the official and his six guards in exchange for our two colleagues."
The commissioner for the Malakand division which includes Swat, Syed Mohammad Jawed confirmed the official and his guards had been freed but refused to comment on any swap.
On Saturday Taliban fighters and Pakistani officials had agreed to a "permanent ceasefire" in Swat, A senior Pakistani government official confirmed. But in same day in Peshawar two of Taliban comrades had been arrested.
On Sunday the Taliban fighters kidnapped the official. The Taliban criticize that the arrests had violated their conditions for ordering a 10-day ceasefire in Swat on Feb. 15.
The Pakistan government has backed a deal with radical cleric Maulana Sufi Mohammad to restore Islamic law to Swat and neighboring regions if he could persuade the Taliban to give up fighting.
But Taliban commander Maulana Fazlullah, who is Sufi Mohammad’s son-in-law, said there would be a decision announced once the current temporary ceasefire expires in the middle of this week.