KASHMIR: MILITARY CONTINUE TO SEARCH FOR WESTERN HOSTAGES

Описание: (11 Jun 1996) Hindi/Nat

Ambassadors of four Western nations have flown into Kashmir to meet officials and tour the area where four hostages were allegedly killed and buried by their rebel captors.

The visit came after Indian security forces searched the mountains of Kashmir for graves of the four Westerners but found no bodies.

Military helicopters continue to search for the four hostages.

The security forces check locals and passengers of passing vehicles near Magam village, 66 kilometers (41 miles) south of Srinagar, the capital of Jammu-Kashmir.

A militant who was captured last month claimed the four hostages - an American, two Britons and a German - were killed and buried in the Magam area.

The Indian authorities have not allowed any journalists near the area.

The separatist group Al-Faran captured six Westerners as they were trekking in the mountains of Kashmir last July.

One American captive escaped a few days later while a Norwegian hostage was beheaded.

The ambassadors have appealed to Al-Faran to release the hostages, saying there is no point in holding innocent tourists.

In the forests near Magam, some militants have now changed sides.

They are helping the Indian authorities believe that the hostages may not be dead.

VOXPOP: (Hindi)
"If they (hostages) had been killed, we would have surely found some clue by now.
(Question: Has the operation yielded any results?)
"The operation has found nothing so far."
SUPERCAPTION: vox pop Indian soldier

Some have vague news about the hostages - outdated though it might be.

SOUNDBITE: (Hindi)
"Till two months back, we were receiving some information about the hostages."
(Question: Are they still alive?)
"Yes, that they are alive and are being taken around in the Magam forest area, in Pahalgaon and in many other forests here."
SUPER CAPTION: Bilal Hyder, Commander of Renegade Militant Group

It's thought officials of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Scotland Yard are still camping in the forests of Magam, hoping to find clues about the hostages' fate.

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