Taliban release two Swiss hostages

Pakistan

Taliban release two Swiss hostages

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Olivier David Och, 31, and Daniela Widmer, 28, were abducted at gunpoint.

15 March,2012 11:36 am

The Pakistani Taliban have released two Swiss hostages kidnapped more than eight months ago while travelling through the countrys volatile southwest, the army said Thursday.They are safe and sound. We shifted them to Peshawar, Pakistani army spokesman Major General Athar Abbas told AFP, referring to the northwestern city that abuts Pakistans tribal belt where they were held captive.Olivier David Och, 31, and Daniela Widmer, 28, were abducted at gunpoint in Pakistans southwestern province of Baluchistan on July 1.The Pakistani Taliban claimed the abduction soon after, demanding that they be exchanged for Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani neuro-scientist sentenced in 2010 in New York for the attempted murder of US government agents in Afghanistan.In October, a video had emerged showing the couple -- apparently in relatively good health -- flanked by four masked gunmen pointing rifles at their heads.Balochistan, which borders Iran and Afghanistan, attracts few tourists due to separatist violence and Taliban activity.