Nepal hostage dies in Afghanistan

Authorities say the kidnappers were not paid ransom

One of two Nepalese men kidnapped in the Afghan capital, Kabul, two weeks ago has been freed, while the other has been found dead, officials say.

The two men, who were working as security guards for a British aid agency in Kabul, were kidnapped by a criminal gang, authorities said.

Deputy Interior Minister Abdul Malek Sidiqi said the gang abandoned the men as the police were closing in on them.

Officials said the hostage found dead had taken ill and died in captivity.

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Afghanistan

Speaking to the Associated Press news agency, the Nepalese ambassador in Pakistan, Pushkar Man Rajbhandari, identified the released man as Thanam Sing Lamichane Rana and the dead man as Chet Narayan Pun.

Last year, an Italian aid worker based in Kabul was held for 24 days by a criminal gang, before being released unharmed. Earlier, three UN election observers had also been kidnapped and later released.

'Criminals'

The two Nepalese men were kidnapped at gunpoint on 11 February as they walked through a Kabul suburb.

The kidnappers had "directly contacted the aid group" to demand ransom money in return for freeing the Nepalese guards but their demands were not met, Mr Sidiqi said.

He said the government "never deals with criminals".

Police had received a tip-off late on Monday that the two hostages may be moved from the capital and surrounded a western suburb, but the gang escaped, he added.

"The kidnappers, taking advantage of the cover of the night, threw out the hostages. Unfortunately one of them who was suffering from a stomach problem was dead," he said.

The men had not been tortured by their captors, Mr Sidiqi said.

The released man and the body of the other hostage will be handed to the Nepalese embassy in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad. Nepal does not have an embassy in Afghanistan.