Kidnapped journalist freed in Pakistan (From Asian Image)

11:46am Thursday 9th September 2010 in

A British journalist held captive by militants in Pakistan has been freed.

Asad Qureshi was attempting to film Taliban leaders in the country’s lawless tribal area of North Waziristan when he was abducted earlier this year.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: “We can confirm that Asad Qureshi has been released. Our consular staff are providing assistance.”

The British High Commission in Islamabad was unable to give details of his release.

One of the intelligence officials he was travelling with, Khalid Khawaja, was executed by the militants.

The fate of the other captive, Sultan Amir Tarar, was not immediately clear.

Authorities were understood to have been negotiating his release since April.

Qureshi, a British national of Pakistani descent, is a film-maker who has been working freelance for at least five years.

Two former senior members of Pakistan’s intelligence agency, who were acting as guides, were believed to have been abducted at the same time.

North Waziristan remains a stronghold for the Taliban and a continuing source of anxiety for Western governments.

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