Pakistan on Tuesday denied a claim by the son of a Pakistan Embassy official held hostage in Iraq that the kidnappers had demanded a $500,000 ransom for his release.
Muddasir Malik, son of abducted Malik Muhammad Javed, said his father had contacted the family in Islamabad on Sunday and told them about the kidnappers’ demand. “My father called home on Sunday and told us he has been abducted and they are demanding $500,000 to release him,” Muddasir said.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Jalil Abbas Jilani said on Monday that there was no political motive behind the kidnapping and the official was ‘apparently’ taken hostage for ransom.
However on Tuesday, Jilani said the reported $500,000 demand was ‘untrue’. He did not give any further details about what the kidnappers wanted or whether Pakistan still believed Malik Javed had been abducted for ransom.
Jilani said the hostage had contacted the Pakistani mission on Monday in Baghdad and told them he was safe.
It will be intersting to see how this plays out. I hope they tip off the American soldiers if they buy his rescue and plan on driving through a roadblock.