Hostages Held in Himalayas

Asia

India: Kashmiri separatists have been holding an American and four other foreign tourists who were seized earlier this month while on a trekking vacation in the Himalaya Mountains of northern India. In addition to the American, identified by wire services as Donald Hutchings of Spokane, Wash., the militants also hold two Britons, a German and a Norwegian. At press time Wednesday, the rebels were threatening to kill the hostages unless certain demands are met. The State Department warns against travel to the region known as Jammu and Kashmir and cautions that the Kashmir Valley is “a dangerous place where terrorist activities and violent civil disturbances continue.”

Pakistan: There is an increased likelihood of violence against Americans in Pakistan, the State Department warns. A notice issued June 28 by the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad urges U.S. citizens to be cautious in the coming weeks, avoid routine movements and vary their schedules and routes. The notice said security conditions continue to deteriorate in the port city of Karachi, where two Americans attached to the U.S. Consulate were shot to death by unidentified gunmen in March. Travelers in the region who cannot avoid stops in Karachi are urged to avoid leaving the airport during stopovers. According to the Reuters news service, about 1,100 people have died in ethnic violence in Karachi since the beginning of this year.

Japan: There were fresh cases of poison gas jitters early this month. On the night of July 4, timing devices with lethal chemicals were found and defused by police at four of Tokyo’s busiest subway stations, the U.S. Embassy said. It was not known if police suspected the Aum Supreme Truth cult, which has been implicated in the nerve gas attack on Tokyo’s subways that killed 12 people in March. In another incident reported by Reuters on July 2, at least 25 people were sickened by mystery fumes at a subway station in Yokohama. The fumes were not identified, and the victims were apparently not seriously hurt. The embassy has recommended that Americans “take prudent security precautions” while in Tokyo.

Western Europe

The State Department warns that there is a “good possibility” of attacks against American business and diplomatic sites, primarily in Germany and Italy, if Pennsylvania executes convicted killer Mumia Abu-Jamal on Aug. 17 as scheduled. Abu-Jamal, a former member of the Black Panther Party, was convicted in 1982 of killing a Philadelphia policeman, and he has become a cause celebre for various leftist groups in Europe. When the execution order was signed in June, protests targeted U.S. diplomatic facilities in eight West European nations. If Abu-Jamal is executed, look for “a two-to-three-day wave of low-level bombings and arson attacks,” according to a State Department assessment.

Middle East

Israel: Five Israeli passengers and a suicide bomber were killed last week when the terrorist detonated a pipe bomb stuffed with TNT aboard a bus in a Tel Aviv suburb. Palestinian militants opposed to the Israel-PLO peace accord claimed responsibility for the blast, which occurred in the busy Ramat Gan business district and left 32 people wounded. In response, Israeli officials temporarily sealed off the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Because of the terrorism threat, the State Department advises Americans in Israel to avoid public transportation.

Briefly . . .

Hot spots: State Department travel warnings are in effect for Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Burundi, Colombia, Croatia, Guatemala, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Peru, Rwanda, Serbia and Montenegro, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan and Tajikistan.

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The U.S. State Department offers recorded travel warnings and advisories at (202) 647-5225; the fax line is (202) 647-3000.