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| Pakistani Politician’s Son, Abducted 5 Years Ago, Is Found Alive | Pakistani Politician’s Son, Abducted 5 Years Ago, Is Found Alive |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistani officials said Tuesday that the police and security forces had found Shahbaz Ali Taseer, the son of a prominent former governor, alive in southwestern Pakistan five years after militants kidnapped him in a mystery that had riveted Pakistan for years. | |
| Mr. Taseer, now in his early 30s, was kidnapped by Islamist militants on Aug. 26, 2011, in Lahore. Eight months before the kidnapping, his father, Salmaan Taseer, the governor of Punjab Province, was assassinated by one of his security guards, who had been outraged over Mr. Taseer’s campaign to alter the country’s harsh blasphemy laws. | Mr. Taseer, now in his early 30s, was kidnapped by Islamist militants on Aug. 26, 2011, in Lahore. Eight months before the kidnapping, his father, Salmaan Taseer, the governor of Punjab Province, was assassinated by one of his security guards, who had been outraged over Mr. Taseer’s campaign to alter the country’s harsh blasphemy laws. |
| The two episodes made the Taseers a public symbol of a Pakistani liberal establishment family that had been threatened by extremism. Speculation about Shahbaz Taseer’s health has continued over the years, with some assuming that he had been killed by his captors. | |
| Mr. Taseer was found Tuesday evening in Kuchlak, a town near Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan Province, according to Anwarul Haq Kakar, a spokesman of the provincial ministry. The province has long been a battleground between the Pakistani security forces and ethnic Baluch separatists. It is also known as a stronghold for jihadist and sectarian extremist groups, including the Afghan Taliban. | Mr. Taseer was found Tuesday evening in Kuchlak, a town near Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan Province, according to Anwarul Haq Kakar, a spokesman of the provincial ministry. The province has long been a battleground between the Pakistani security forces and ethnic Baluch separatists. It is also known as a stronghold for jihadist and sectarian extremist groups, including the Afghan Taliban. |
| “He has been safely recovered,” Mr. Kakar said. “He is with the law enforcement agencies.” | “He has been safely recovered,” Mr. Kakar said. “He is with the law enforcement agencies.” |
| The spokesman offered few details except that a joint operation by the police and intelligence agencies after 4 p.m. led to the discovery of Mr. Taseer. “Today is a very big day for law enforcement agencies.” | The spokesman offered few details except that a joint operation by the police and intelligence agencies after 4 p.m. led to the discovery of Mr. Taseer. “Today is a very big day for law enforcement agencies.” |
| The rescue comes a week after the confessed killer of the elder Mr. Taseer, Mumtaz Qadri, was executed by the Pakistani authorities. Mr. Qadri was widely considered a hero of Islam for killing Mr. Taseer, who was 65 at the time, as hundreds of thousands of mourners demonstrated after his execution. | The rescue comes a week after the confessed killer of the elder Mr. Taseer, Mumtaz Qadri, was executed by the Pakistani authorities. Mr. Qadri was widely considered a hero of Islam for killing Mr. Taseer, who was 65 at the time, as hundreds of thousands of mourners demonstrated after his execution. |
| A senior official with the police told reporters for Agence France-Presse that the raid on Tuesday took place after a tip and that the police and intelligence agencies had found Mr. Taseer in an empty compound. “We surrounded the compound and we raided it. We didn’t find anyone. A single person was there and he told us, ‘My name is Shahbaz, and my father’s name is Salmaan Taseer,’” a senior police official, Aitzaz Goraya, was quoted as saying. | A senior official with the police told reporters for Agence France-Presse that the raid on Tuesday took place after a tip and that the police and intelligence agencies had found Mr. Taseer in an empty compound. “We surrounded the compound and we raided it. We didn’t find anyone. A single person was there and he told us, ‘My name is Shahbaz, and my father’s name is Salmaan Taseer,’” a senior police official, Aitzaz Goraya, was quoted as saying. |
| Suleman Ghani, the father-in-law of Mr. Taseer, said the family had been informed by the authorities about the operation but gave no further details. | Suleman Ghani, the father-in-law of Mr. Taseer, said the family had been informed by the authorities about the operation but gave no further details. |
| It was not clear which militant group was holding Mr. Taseer. Officials said that he was kidnapped by the banned sectarian extremist group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, but that he had been passed on to several different militant cells during his captivity. At least part of that time, he was believed to have been held in the North Waziristan tribal area, a nexus of militant activity that was the focus of a Pakistani military offensive in 2014. | It was not clear which militant group was holding Mr. Taseer. Officials said that he was kidnapped by the banned sectarian extremist group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, but that he had been passed on to several different militant cells during his captivity. At least part of that time, he was believed to have been held in the North Waziristan tribal area, a nexus of militant activity that was the focus of a Pakistani military offensive in 2014. |
| The mysterious circumstances around the case led to speculation that a ransom might have been paid, but there was no confirmation of that or other central details of the Mr. Taseer’s freedom. | The mysterious circumstances around the case led to speculation that a ransom might have been paid, but there was no confirmation of that or other central details of the Mr. Taseer’s freedom. |
| Asif Ali Zardari, the former Pakistani president, hailed the release of Mr. Taseer. “It was not yet clear as to who and how his release became possible. However, all those who made efforts in securing his release deserve to be commended,” Mr. Zardari said in a news release. | Asif Ali Zardari, the former Pakistani president, hailed the release of Mr. Taseer. “It was not yet clear as to who and how his release became possible. However, all those who made efforts in securing his release deserve to be commended,” Mr. Zardari said in a news release. |
| Mr. Zardari also expressed the hope that the son of former Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, who was kidnapped during the 2013 elections, would also be released. | Mr. Zardari also expressed the hope that the son of former Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, who was kidnapped during the 2013 elections, would also be released. |
| “It is hard to imagine the torture of uncertainty inflicted on a person and his family who is abducted by unknown abductors and kept for five years at an unknown location beyond any glimmer of hope and far beyond the reach of law,” Mr. Zardari said. “Shahbaz Taseer and his entire family deserve to be commended for enduring this ordeal and nerve-racking experience.” | “It is hard to imagine the torture of uncertainty inflicted on a person and his family who is abducted by unknown abductors and kept for five years at an unknown location beyond any glimmer of hope and far beyond the reach of law,” Mr. Zardari said. “Shahbaz Taseer and his entire family deserve to be commended for enduring this ordeal and nerve-racking experience.” |