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| Bicyclist from China kidnapped in Pakistan | Bicyclist from China kidnapped in Pakistan |
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| ISLAMABAD – Taliban militants have kidnapped a tourist from China who was riding a bicycle in Northwest Pakistan, the latest incident of violence targeting bicyclists who attempt to make ill-advised trips across the country. | ISLAMABAD – Taliban militants have kidnapped a tourist from China who was riding a bicycle in Northwest Pakistan, the latest incident of violence targeting bicyclists who attempt to make ill-advised trips across the country. |
| Security officials said the man was kidnapped on Monday near Dera Ismail Khan in northwest Pakistan. He was on a bicycle trip from Lahore in eastern Pakistan to Balochistan in the western part of the country, they said. | |
| Pakistani believe two armed men on a motorbike approached the man and forced him off his bicycle near the town, located on the banks of the Indus River. Authorities later recovered the man’s bicycle, bag, passport and other travel documents near the border of Khyber Paktunkhwa Province and South Waziristan. | |
| In a message sent to several Pakistani media outlets Tuesday, a faction of the Pakistan Taliban took credit for carrying out the abduction Monday afternoon. | In a message sent to several Pakistani media outlets Tuesday, a faction of the Pakistan Taliban took credit for carrying out the abduction Monday afternoon. |
| “We want our detained militants to be released and we kidnapped him for this purpose,” Abdullah Bihar Mehsuh of the Taliban’s Sheryar Mehsud faction, told Express News on Tuesday. | “We want our detained militants to be released and we kidnapped him for this purpose,” Abdullah Bihar Mehsuh of the Taliban’s Sheryar Mehsud faction, told Express News on Tuesday. |
| Tasnim Aslam, a spokeswoman for Pakistan’s Foreign Office, said security officials were working to locate the man and secure his release. | Tasnim Aslam, a spokeswoman for Pakistan’s Foreign Office, said security officials were working to locate the man and secure his release. |
| “We are in touch with Chinese authorities on this and Pakistani police are trying to arrest the culprits,” Aslam said. | “We are in touch with Chinese authorities on this and Pakistani police are trying to arrest the culprits,” Aslam said. |
| Faqir Muhammad, a police official in Dera Ismail Khan, said officers are targeting known militant hideouts to try to locate him. | |
| "No clues as yet but the hunt is on," Muhammad said. | |
| A spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Islamabad declined to comment. The incident comes as relations between China and Pakistan have been repeatedly tested over the years due to incidents of terrorism. | |
| The Chinese government and investors have poured billions of dollars into Pakistani public works projects and business ventures, but that investment has not resulted in increased security for Chinese nationals who work or travel to Pakistan. | The Chinese government and investors have poured billions of dollars into Pakistani public works projects and business ventures, but that investment has not resulted in increased security for Chinese nationals who work or travel to Pakistan. |
| In 2004, three Chinese engineers were kidnapped while working on a new dam in South Waziristan. One of the men was subsequently killed in a failed rescue operation. | In 2004, three Chinese engineers were kidnapped while working on a new dam in South Waziristan. One of the men was subsequently killed in a failed rescue operation. |
| Last year, two Chinese nationals were among 11 people killed when a Taliban faction assaulted a base camp for climbers attempting to ascend Nanga Parbat, Pakistan’s second tallest mountain. The militants, angered over a U.S. drone strike that killed a senior Taliban commander, executed the climbers about 1 a.m. as they slept in their tents. | |
| It was unclear Tuesday whether the bicyclist was traveling alone when he was abducted. | It was unclear Tuesday whether the bicyclist was traveling alone when he was abducted. |
| Dera Ismail Khan is located in one of the most dangerous parts of Pakistan. Pakistani authorities essentially ban most foreigners from traveling there in part due to concerns for their safety. | Dera Ismail Khan is located in one of the most dangerous parts of Pakistan. Pakistani authorities essentially ban most foreigners from traveling there in part due to concerns for their safety. |
| But foreign tourists continue to attempt cross-country bicycle tours of Pakistan. | But foreign tourists continue to attempt cross-country bicycle tours of Pakistan. |
| In January, a Spanish cyclist was ambushed after he crossed from Iran into Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province. Javier Colorado Soriano survived, but his story made headlines around the globe because Pakistani officials said six police officers had been killed trying to protect him during the assault. | |
| Soriano, however, later told the Spanish La Vanguardia newspaper that Pakistani authorities had assigned only two guards. He said both of them survived and that the slain police officers were killed in a separate incident in the violence-plagued province. | |