http://news.sympatico.msn.ctv.ca/TopStories/ContentPosting.aspx?feedname=CTV-TOPSTORIES_V2&showbyline=True&newsitemid=CTVNews%2f20070725%2ftaliban_hostages_070725
Afghan authorities have recovered the bullet-riddled body of one of 23 South Korean hostages captured last week by the Taliban.
Meanwhile, some of the captives have been freed and taken to a U.S. military base, two western officials told The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity.
The male victim was discovered in Ghazni province in central Afghanistan, police officer Abdul Rahman told AP. The body had 10 bullet holes located in the head, chest and stomach.
Qari Mohammad Yousuf, who claims to speak for the Taliban, confirmed earlier Wednesday that one of the hostages had been executed.
"Since Kabul's administration did not listen to our demand and did not free our prisoners, the Taliban shot dead a male Korean hostage," he told Reuters.
Yousuf said insurgents would kill more if their demands were not met.
"If the administration of Kabul is not ready to release our hostages, then by 1:00 am (4:30 p.m. ET) the rest of the hostages will be killed," he said. "That time is the last deadline."
AP is reporting that the dead hostage was killed because he was sick and couldn't walk.
Before the first death Tuesday, Yousuf warned that if the Afghan government failed to meet the demands of the captors "a few" of the hostages would be killed between 11:30 a.m. (3 a.m. ET) and 2 p.m. (5:30 a.m. ET).
He did not comment on the release of any of the hostages.
The aid workers, including 18 women, were kidnapped Thursday in Ghazni district while riding on a bus from Kabul to Kandahar on Afghanistan's major highway.
Three previous deadlines for the hostages' lives had passed without consequence.
The militants were originally demanding the release of 23 Taliban prisoners.
An Afghan lawmaker said the militants had upped their demands Monday, insisting all insurgent prisoners in Ghazni province be released in exchange for the Koreans. Yousuf, however, denied the allegation.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai in March authorized the release of five Taliban prisoners in exchange for a kidnapped Italian journalist, but he called the trade a one-time deal.
The move was criticized by the United States and European nations who felt the trade would encourage more kidnappings.
South Korea has about 200 soldiers serving with the 8,000-strong U.S.-led coalition in Afghanistan, largely working on humanitarian projects. They are scheduled to leave Afghanistan at the end of this year.
With files from The Associated Press