By IANS
Ghazni (Afghanistan) : The Taliban Wednesday freed 12 South Korean hostages, while the remaining seven hostages would be released Thursday.
A Xinhua reporter saw a local tribal elder handing over four hostages – three female and one male – to the International Committee of the Red Cross in Qarabagh district.
The hostages soon would be transferred to Ghazni city, the capital of Ghazni province.
Earlier Wednesday, Taliban militants freed seven female and one male hostages. They had arrived in Ghazni city and met South Korean officials.
The Taliban would free the remaining seven South Korean hostages Thursday, a local tribal elder engaged in talks told Xinhua.
The Taliban and South Korean authorities reached an agreement Tuesday, which said all 19 hostages would be released in the coming days without the precondition of releasing Taliban prisoners.
In return, the South Korean government promised to withdraw all its 200 troops from Afghanistan by the end of this year, and to forbid all Christian activities in this country.
A total of 23 South Koreans were kidnapped by Taliban militants on a road in Ghazni province on July 19.
Taliban rebels shot dead one male hostage on July 25 and one more on July 30 to press Afghan and South Korean authorities to meet their main demand for releasing some Taliban prisoners.
Two female hostages were released on Aug 13 as the Taliban claimed it wanted to show “a good gesture” toward South Korean authorities.
The Afghan government has all along refused to meet the Taliban’s demand for releasing Taliban prisoners in exchange for the remaining 19 hostages.