US journalist kidnapped near Afghan capital

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(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-11-11 15:55

KABUL -- An American journalist with the New York Times along with his two Afghan colleagues were kidnapped Monday in Logar province, some 60 km south of Afghan capital Kabul, the spokesman for provincial administration said Tuesday.

"Unknown people abducted David, the journalist of New York Times along with his local interpreter Tahir and driver yesterday evening while driving towards Charkh district without informing police," spokesman Jan Mohammad Khalid told Xinhua.

The spokesman did not provide the full name of the abducted journalist.

He added that the incident occurred at around 5:00 pm local time (1230 GMT).

The provincial government's spokesman also said that the abducted journalist wanted to interview local Taliban fighters on his own without contacting the local officials.

Meantime, the police chief of Logar province Mustafa Mohsini when approached by Xinhua said "any foreigners including journalists should contact police before travelling to Logar province."

No group or individuals have yet to claim responsibility for the abduction.

Afghanistan has seen a spike in kidnapping of foreigners either by Taliban militants or other criminal gangs during past months as a Canadian female journalist working for CBC was kidnapped from Kabul but set free after almost one month in captivity.

Spiraling conflicts and Taliban-linked insurgency have claimed around 5,000 people with over 1,500 civilians so far this year in strife-torn Afghanistan while Taliban insurgents have vowed to intensify assaults against interests of Afghan government and international troops before the coming winter.