January 30, 2003	Thursday	Ziqa’ad 26,1423

NEW DELHI, Jan 29: India has formally confirmed that five western hostages kidnapped in Kashmir in 1995 had been killed, news reports said on Tuesday.

One report said the “Jammu and Kashmir government has finally issued death certificates of four foreign hostages who were abducted by terrorists in 1995”.

The Press Trust of India said the federal government had sought a reply from the state police in Srinagar after a representation was received from kin of hostage Paul Wells of Britain to hear a final word about him from New Delhi.

“The State Government had said that as far as Wells was concerned, the DNA test had confirmed that the skeleton recovered from South Kashmir was that of the UK national,” PTI said, quoting sources.

A group of six Western tourists — Derk Hassert, Keith Mangan, John Childs, Donald Hutchings, Paul Wells and Hans Christan Ostro — were kidnapped between July 4 and 6 in 1995 by a little known militant outfit Al-Faran, which was later claimed to be a shadow group of Harkat-ul-Ansar.

While John Childs managed to escape from his abductors, body of Ostro was found on August 17, 1995, with his head severed.

The state police, which conducted extensive searches for them, has now issued death certificates under Section 108 of Indian Evidence Act.

Under the act, any person missing for over seven years could be declared dead.—J.N.