Kashmiri Rebels Put Off Hostage Deadline
Guerrillas holding an American and three other Westerners hostage in India’s troubled Kashmir region extended a deadline indefinitely as Indian officials said Sunday that talks about the hostages’ release were continuing.
The Al Faran militants had said they would kill the hostages if India did not announce agreement to their demands by Saturday evening. The group wants India to release 15 separatists, including three Pakistanis.
“Al Faran has, in response to an appeal made by relatives of the hostages, reviewed its decision and extended the deadline further,” the group said in a statement delivered to the Urdu-language Al Safa newspaper.
A spokesman for Jammu and Kashmir state said: “We had contact last night. They are responding.”
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