SG Complains

Taliban Issue Another Hostage Deadline

According to AsiaOne News:

GHAZNI, Afghanistan (AP) — Police discovered the body of a second South Korean hostage in central Afghanistan, and the Taliban threatened Tuesday to kill more captives if their demands were not met by a new deadline.

South Korea pleaded with the international community to set aside the normal practice of refusing to cave into hostage-takers’ demands, urging a peaceful resolution to the standoff. Relatives of some of the 21 remaining hostages appealed for U.S. help in freeing their loved ones.

South Korea “is well aware of how the international community deals with these kinds of abduction cases,” said a statement from the president’s office. “But it also believes that it would be worthwhile to use flexibility in the cause of saving the precious lives of those still in captivity and is appealing (to) the international community to do so.”

See more at AsiaOne News

- This might be very bad situation for the international communities as the problems might escalate into a full blown international conflict. If the exchange of hostages with the release of Prisoners are approved…then more hostage will be taken in the future and it will never ends as proven in previous hostage taking by the Taliban. It’s almost becoming a business venture that they took the risk and acquired some “assets” and exchange it with something they want that can be money, prisoners, satellite phones, bazooka, or maybe a Broad Band Internet…using a Macintosh!! This cannot go on forever, and the only way is to change the rules of the “transaction” and do it quickly before it becomes a weekly affair.

Let’s think of solutions and the pro and cons of the solutions…

1. Do the exchange…set the prisoners free and exchange for the freedom of the hostages!

Advantages are the just to avoid the whole thing escalates into a international event or religious conflict between Christians and Muslims….with possible serious implication affecting the regions. Avoiding this might not disturb the current peace and economy of the region.

Disadvantages are the Taliban might do another hostages with someone else family with bigger demands then possibly more weapons, money, manpower (prisoner release), equipments etc. The danger of might spread to even more elaborate hostage taking or violent act that the world cannot accept.

2. Send in some special forces in and rescue them by force by International Coalition soldiers.

Advantages are quick end to the crisis with some probability of eliminating those involved or capture them once and for all showing the “shock and awe” of the soldiers making it less likely for future similar hostage situation from happening.

Disadvantages are possible casualties by accident in the middle of the firefight, booby trapped with explosive, disguised hostages with bombs attached that might detonate if the hostage don’t shoot back to the special forces or even more elaborate movie scenes that might happen…like the possible immediate execution of hostages in front of the special forces or international media TV reporters. Things might go very very bad if that happens and a war might break out between the world communities and hate crimes will start.

There might be other ways to deal with this situation but usually the plan must be covert…and cannot be revealed but usually the movies will think of it first…like the war strategies of Sun Zi Ping Fa.

Possible solutions that might work….

1. Agreed to release the prisoners but implant some kind of GPS tracking devices on them that will explode if tempted with and also will explode by remote controlled by satellite control. Once the hostages are released with media confirmation…either bomb the hell out of the location or activate that remote detonation with enough explosive to blow a small building.

2. Agreed to release the prisoners but only to exchange at a location with full media coverage so that to guarantee the safety of the hostages. Once the exchange had been done, do the old fashion detective work and insiders information to deploy a international swift action to clean up the Taliban’s actions.

3. Just do a GPS tracking devices implant in the prisoners without their knowledge and do the exchange…..and “clean” up the prisoners after that. If the prisoners are “assets” to uncovering more information then this way can also recapture them instead of “cleaning” them out.

Just my 3 cents worth of thoughts!!