JAMMU: tow of the foreign hostages being held by the AL-Faran militant outfit for the past 13 months, have been sighted at Bajpathari in Doda district. Official sources said oat ANGE 26 that the two hostages were seen at Bajpathari, Situated at 12,000 feet in Kishtwar forests early last week by forest guards and some nomads in a meadow between Madhwa and Chatroo. Chatroo is 31 km from Kishtwwar.
The sources said the forest guards had seen only two hostages sporting long beards and with sunburst on their faces. They were guarded by 16 gunmen. According to the forest guards, when they tried to go nearer, there were waved off by the gunmen as also the nomads.
The sources said the forest guards could not identify the two but said one of them was tall and another relatively shorter. They, however, could not say two other hostages were also with them adding that the two must have been somewhere else.
The four hostages Paul Wells and Keith Manigam (British), Donald Hutchings (United States) and Dirk Hassert (Germany) were abducted by Al-Faran on July 4, 1995, from Pahalgam in south Kashmir and had been held in captivity since then. Sources said the hostages were being continuously moved from Anantnag in south Kashmir to Doda district in Jammu region on the outer Himalyan range of Jammu and Kashmir. On the north of Do dais Anantnag while south and southwest are bordered by Udhampur, Kathu a districts and Chamba area of Himachal Pradesh. On its east and southeast is Leh district.
Doda district which varies in altitude from 8000 ft. to 15,000 ft. has a forest area of 2.19 lakh hectares. The sources said this peculiar topography and difficult forest terrain makes it easier for Al-Faran to move safely from Anantnag to Doda district at a height of more than 12,000 feet.
There are also reports of movement of the militants of Harkatul Ansar in Doda forests at a height of more than 12,000 ft. Harkatul Ansar is the parent body of Al-Faran. Governor K.YV. Krishna Rao had recently said that the four foreign hostages were alive and in Kishtwar. The reports were, however, later denied by the Government.
Officials here maintain that the Government had not been in touch with Al-Faran since November 26 last year.
Article extracted from this publication >> August 28, 1996
