AFGHANISTAN:Taliban insurgents have abducted more than 140 labourers involved in the construction of a military base in Afghanistan's western province of Farah, the provincial governor said yesterday.
They were seized on Sunday while travelling in three buses, said the governor, Rohul Amin. Authorities were trying to negotiate their release, he said. Both Taliban and criminal gangs are active in the area.
"Negotiations are under way by elders to release the innocent workers," Mr Amin said. "We want to solve this issue peacefully without involving the military."
A village elder involved in the negotiations said the Taliban were behind the abductions.
Criminal gangs have also been behind a series of abductions of foreigners and Afghans. Kidnapping has become a lucrative business here, amid rising violence.
In a separate incident, five Afghans from a local construction company were killed in a Taliban attack on Monday. - ( Reuters)