October 18, 2008	Saturday	Shawwal 18, 1429

MINGORA, Oct 17: One of the two Chinese engineers held hostage about seven weeks ago has escaped from his Taliban kidnappers.

His compatriot was injured during the escape bid and recaptured.

“We have shifted the engineer to Peshawar and have been looking after him,” said a provincial government official in Peshawar on Friday.

He said that he had been slightly injured in one foot, but otherwise he was in good health.

The two engineers, working for a cellphone company, had gone missing along with their driver and guard in late August when they were on a site in Khal area of Lower Dir district.

A few days later, the Tehrik-i-Taliban claimed to have kidnapped them.

The engineers escaped early on Friday morning from an area in Swat’s Matta tehsil considered to be a stronghold of the Taliban.

The official media cell confirmed that the escaped Chinese was with them and they had shifted him to a safe location.

Swat Taliban spokesman Muslim Khan said: “I have heard that one of the Chinese engineers has gone missing but our men have captured the second one.”