9:28 AM
Muhammad Zai Khan
Professor Ajmal Khan, a locally-renowned academic and a close ally of the ruling Awami National Party in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, was kidnapped on September 7.
In the video tape, aired by number of private TV channels, Khan is shown wearing a traditional Pakhtun cap with a beard, and with two masked men holding Kalashinkov assault rifles standing behind him.
“I am a heart patient and cannot live here any longer. The government should do something for me and should negotiate with the Taliban,” Khan said in the video recording.
“The government should solve their problems (with the Taliban), if they have any,” he added.
An intelligence official in Peshawar said the professor was being held hostage in one of the lawless tribal areas where authorities have no access.
Security officials said Taliban insurgents have been using kidnapping as ransom tool, and to bargain for the release of their militants being held by Pakistan authorities
