RAWALPINDI: Kidnappers who abducted three Pakistanis in Turkey have not contacted the victim’s families after the deadline for the ransom passed on Saturday evening. However, authorities in Islamabad have initiated efforts to recover the Pakistanis safely and end the crisis.

An official from the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) told Dawn the Pakistani embassy has taken up the case, while the FIA has been in touch with the families of the captives.

The official said the agency has also been in contact with the Pakistani embassy in Turkey, to whom it has provided important information regarding the kidnapping.

After the FIA began looking into the case, the relatives of the victims – Zeeshan Jahandad, Ghulam Fareed and Mudassar Ali – were contacted by senior FIA officials from the anti-human trafficking wing for details about the kidnapping.

Mehtab, who is related to Mr Jahandad, said the officials sought written details about the kidnapping and assured them the Pakistani authorities had initiated efforts to recover the three men.

He said they are particularly worried since the ransom deadline passed, as none of the captives had contacted them and the kidnappers had threatened to kill them during their last conversation on Saturday.

He said the kidnappers demanded $20,000 for each man, and refused to extend the ransom deadline.

Two of the three victims are from the Katarian village in Rawat, while the third is from Gujar Khan. They had intended to travel on to Europe from Turkey when they were abducted by unidentified individuals who contacted their families in Pakistan and demanded a ransom for their safe release.

The kidnappers reportedly tortured the captives, and allowed one of the victims, 24-year-old Mr Jahandad, to speak to his father Jahandad Khan. Mr Mehtab said Mr Jahandad asked his father to arrange the ransom or the kidnappers would kill him.

Mr Mehtab said Mr Khan was first contacted on March 6, soon after the kidnapping, and then in a call on Friday the kidnappers told them the deadline for the payment was Saturday.

Mr Mehtab said Mr Jahandad’s arms and legs were fractured by the kidnappers, because he had been screaming from pain while speaking over the phone.

Mr Fareed, who belongs to Gujar Khan, left his hometown on Eidul Azha and travelled to Turkey after paying a travel agent a huge amount of money. Iftikhar Ahmed, one of his relatives, said the kidnappers gave them a four day period to arrange the ransom and did not tell them where the money was to be delivered.

Previously, six Pakistani nationals who were kidnapped in Turkey were recovered by the Turkish authorities in early January and sent back to Pakistan.

Published in Dawn, March 13th, 2017