By DPA
Kabul : A German journalist and his Afghan interpreter were feared to have been kidnapped in Afghanistan's Kunar province while another German hostage was stated to be seriously ill, officials said Wednesday.
Kunar Governor Shalezai Dedar said rebels were reported to have abducted the reporter and his assistant from a house in the village of Sangar in Wadapur district.
Local officials had been sent to the area to look into the matter, the governor said.
German Foreign Ministry spokesman Martin Jaeger said Berlin's embassy in Kabul was looking into reports that a German journalist in Afghanistan was missing.
The missing man, a reporter for a weekly magazine, had gone to the village to look into claims that 27 civilians were killed there in a recent NATO air strike.
Two German engineers and four Afghans were kidnapped in central Afghanistan last week. One of the Germans was still being held and was reportedly in ill-health, while the other died in captivity and was due to be flown home Wednesday. The four Afghans are reportedly still alive.
Reliable sources told DPA Wednesday that the engineer was still alive. The Taliban had claimed Tuesday that he was weak and ill.
The German government is continuing efforts to secure the release of the hostage.