- Title: JAPAN: Freed journalist denies Taliban involvement in his kidnapping
- Date: 8th September 2010
- Summary: TOKYO, JAPAN (SEPTEMBER 7, 2010) (REUTERS) RECENTLY FREED JAPANESE JOURNALIST KOUSUKE TSUNEOKA WALKING INTO NEWS CONFERENCE JOURNALISTS LISTENING TO TSUNEOKA (SOUNDBITE) (Japanese) KOUSUKE TSUNEOKA, RECENTLY FREED JAPANESE JOURNALIST, SAYING: "The incident this time had nothing to do with the Taliban. It was instead the result of a local corrupt militant group that had separated from the central government and ran amok." NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (Japanese) KOUSUKE TSUNEOKA, RECENTLY FREED JAPANESE JOURNALIST, SAYING: "The man beside me, Khali Abraham, ordered me not to say that I was captured by Hezbi E Islam but was instead taken by the Taliban." JOURNALIST TAKING NOTES (SOUNDBITE) (Japanese) KOUSUKE TSUNEOKA, RECENTLY FREED JAPANESE JOURNALIST, SAYING: "Commander Latif has an office in Kabul and is living a normal life. Karzai hasn't punished him, but instead announced that this incident was conducted by the Taliban." JOURNALISTS CLAPPING AND TSUNEOKA STANDING UP AND BOWING
- Embargoed: 23rd September 2010 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Japan
- Country: Japan
- Reuters ID: LVA9OXDDTKS1PC214YOFPURP5ADZ
- Story Text: Japanese journalist Kousuke Tsuneoka, recently freed from captivity in Afghanistan, denied Taliban involvement in his kidnapping and implicated the involvement of the Afghan government in Tokyo on Tuesday (September 7).
Tsuneoka was released on Sunday (September 5) and arrived in Japan on Monday (September 6) after over 5 months in captivity in Afghanistan.
While some media originally reported him as being freed from Taliban captivity, Tsuneoka was quick to assert that the Taliban were not involved.
"The incident this time had nothing to do with the Taliban. It was instead the result of a local corrupt militant group that had separated from the central government and ran amok." Tsuneoka said.
Tsuneoka, who had been in Afghanistan since mid-March, went missing in the northern city of Kunduz near the border with Tajikistan.
In order to disguise the fact that he had been captured by a government associated group, Tsuneoka explained that he was told to act as if the Taliban had captured him.
"The man beside me, Khali Abraham, ordered me not to say that I was captured by Hezbi E Islam but was instead taken by the Taliban." Tsuneoka said to reporters gathered at his news conference.
Tsuneoka said that the group that captured him, Hezbi E Islam, has connections to the Afghan government and the man he said is in charge, Commander Latif, is still in good standing with the government.
"Commander Latif has an office in Kabul and is living a normal life. Karzai hasn't punished him, but instead announced that this incident was conducted by the Taliban." Tsuneoka said.
Tsuneoka also explained that while he doubted that president Karzai was directly involved, the weakness of the Karzai government is what allowed such corrupt groups in remote places to thrive. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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