KUNDUZ CITY (PAN): Foreign forces managed to get released a New York Times reporter from his kidnappers as a result of a pre-dawn operation in northern Kunduz province, but his Afghan coleague was killed.

Stephen Farrell, the British national, was kidnapped by Taliban militants along with his Afghan counterpart named Mohammad Sultan Munadi from Essa Khel village of Chahar Dara district on Saturday.

In defiance of government orders, the reporter went to the district at his own risk to ascertain information about a deadly NATO air strike that killed about 95 people and wounded several others on Friday last.

The air raid in the Haji Aman village came as insurgents and residents emptied oil into jerry canes from tankers hijacked by Taliban militants from the Kunduz-Baghlan Highway.

District chief Abdul Wahid Omarkhel told Pajhwok Afghan News the foreign forces conducted a ground and air operation in the Mang Tepa village against the kidnappers. The operation resulted into release of the reporter. However, he was not aware about Sultan's fate.

A resident of the village named Najmuddin told this scribe the Taliban came to the house of his neighbor at midnight in two vehicles for hiding there.

The Taliban wanted to spend the night at the house to avoid the operation. However, the foreign forces after some time attacked the house from air and ground, added the resident.

A woman in the house was killed as clash between the Taliban and foreign forces erupted. Najmuddin said he saw a dead body of a man in front of the house this morning. The dead person might be the interpreter, he added. The two vehicles of the Taliban were also destroyed in the attack.

A source of The New York Times in Kabul also confirmed the release of their reporter.

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