Chinese hostages won't be killed - Pakistani Taliban

By Kamran Haider

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistani Taliban said on Wednesday they would not kill two Chinese engineers and two Pakistanis they have been holding since last week, but they would not release them unless unspecified demands were met.

Two Chinese telecommunication engineers and a Pakistani driver and guard were kidnapped near the Afghan border on Friday when they were returning to a guest house after repairing a telecommunications tower.

A Taliban spokesman said on Tuesday they were holding the four.

China is a staunch ally of Pakistan and a major investor. The safety of Chinese nationals is a priority for any Pakistani government.

A Taliban spokesman in the northwest said the four would be held until Taliban demands were met, although he declined to say what the demands were, adding that the Taliban were awaiting an approach from the government.

"There's no plan to kill them. If the government does not listen to us or contact us, then they'll remain detained," said the militant spokesman, Muslim Khan.

The militants have been pressing for enforcement of hardline Taliban-style rule and have in the past demanded an end to military operations against them and the release of their captured comrades.

The four were abducted in Dir, a mountainous region that borders Afghanistan as well as the Pakistani tribal region of Bajaur and the Swat Valley, where security forces have been fighting al Qaeda and Taliban militants.