The Hindu : Front Page : No confirmation, says India

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Aug 02, 2004

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Front Page

No confirmation, says India

Our Diplomatic Correspondent

NEW DELHI, AUG. 1. The Government announced tonight that it had no confirmation of the release of the three Indian hostages being held by militants in Iraq. The Minister of State for External Affairs, E. Ahamed, said he, like others, had seen "breaking news" on television channels that the Indians had been freed.

"Neither our Embassy in Baghdad nor our Embassy in Kuwait have been able to confirm this and I would appeal to [the] media to please check with the Crisis Management Group before putting out such news," Mr. Ahamed said in a statement." The Government is hopeful that the deadline would be extended and the hostages will be freed," he said. "The Government and the people of India have been monitoring the developments in this crisis with great concern. Our hopes of a successful and happy conclusion have all along been sustained by our confidence in the traditionally close and friendly relations between India and Iraq," Mr. Ahamed said.

The Minister, designated as the pointman to handle the crisis, said that India's Ambassador to Oman, Talmiz Ahmad, had arrived in Baghdad today. "He will be monitoring the situation on a continuous basis and giving us his evaluation [of the situation]."

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