KABUL: A Turkish restaurant owner kidnapped 11 days ago in Kabul was freed in an overnight raid by elite commandos from Afghanistan’s intelligence agency, officials said yesterday. The National Directorate of Security (NDS) said it had rescued the man from a house on the outskirts of the capital and handed him over to the Turkish embassy. He was taken hostage at gunpoint on May 12 in Taimany, a district of Kabul popular with foreign residents. “A Turkish investor and businessman who was taken hostage by a kidnap gang was freed last night in an operation,” Shafiqullah Tahiri, the NDS spokesman said. Turkey has about 1,800 troops in the US-led Nato force fighting the Taliban, which is trying to bring down President Hamid Karzai’s Western-backed government.
Saudi to bailout energy sector
ISLAMABAD: With an “amiable” government of Pakistan in place, Saudi Arabia is expected to extend a bailout package of about $15bn to Pakistan’s highly indebted energy sector by supplying crude and furnace oil on deferred payment to enable it to resolve the chronic circular debt issue. A senior government official said the Saudis had been taking reasonable interest in helping out the incoming PML-N government led by Nawaz Sharif. They had extended a similar special package to Pakistan soon after it went nuclear in 1998 and faced international economic sanctions.
Veterans to dominate House
ISLAMABAD: Though a significant number of candidates have won the election for the first time, the new National Assembly of Pakistan is expected to be dominated by old faces. An analysis of results of 263 general seats announced by the Election Commission of Pakistan shows that 119 members will be taking oath for the first time. Prominent among them are Nawaz Sharif, Imran Khan, Javed Hashmi and Maulana Fazlur Rehman.
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