Three Afghan policemen, two National Army soldiers and two truck drivers working for a foreign company were killed by the Taliban on Sunday in the country's south-eastern province of Ghazni, police and Taliban officials said. The seven hostages, who had been kidnapped by the group on December 17 and 18 on the notorious Kabul-Kandahar highway were apparently shot dead while attempting to escape, Taliban spokesman Zabyullah Mujahed told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa by phone from an undisclosed location. Meanwhile, Deputy Provincial Police Chief of Ghazni Mohammad Zaman confirmed that some of the bodies had been recovered, and police were looking for remaining hostages. The Taliban have carried out several kidnappings this year, many of them on the highway linking the capital with the troubled southern province of Kandahar, and have in some cases succeeded in securing the release of several of their jailed comrades in exchange for hostages.
