KABUL (AFP) - Face-to-face negotiations between Afghan officials and militants holding three foreign UN workers hostage have been delayed until Sunday, a spokesman for the kidnappers told AFP.
A delegation representing the Afghan government arrived in the southern province of Kandahar late Saturday for talks with the Taliban splinter group which is claiming to hold the trio of UN workers.
But talks were put off until Sunday after agreement from representatives of both sides, according to Sayed Khaled, a spokesman for the Jaishul Muslimeen (Army of Muslims) group.
"The government delegation has arrived to Kandahar province. The talks have been delayed to tomorrow at noon," Khaled told AFP.
"They arrived late so both sides preferred to postpone the start of the talks to tomorrow. A night-time meeting was considered unsuitable by both sides."
Khaled's group has claimed responsibility for kidnapping Annetta Flanigan from Northern Ireland, Shqipe Habibi from Kosovo, and Angelito Nayan from the Philippines, who were snatched from their vehicle in Kabul on October 28.
The kidnapped workers had been part of the UN team overseeing Afghanistan's landmark presidential elections, which had been bitterly opposed by remnants of the ousted Taliban regime.
Jaishul-Muslimeen has demanded all foreign forces and UN agencies quit Afghanistan and the release of all Taliban prisoners from US custody.
The group had issued a series of deadlines threatening the UN hostages with execution unless their demands were met.
However Khaled said the kidnappers wanted to ensure a peaceful end to the hostage crisis, expressing hope that a deal could be reached.
"We hope that we will reach an agreement," Khaled said.
"We hope that our prisoners and the hostages will be released. They are human beings and our prisoners are also human beings. We hope that the delegation has enough power for a decision."
11/06/2004 - 15:31 GMT - AFP