World | Other World Stories
Nepalese national also freed
"Amma how are you? I am free and I am coming home to you," Mohammad Nayeem told his mother over the telephone at 6:30am (Indian Standard Time, 5am UAE time).
- By Sunita Menon, Staff Reporter
- Published: 00:16 May 19, 2008
Dubai: "Amma how are you? I am free and I am coming home to you," Mohammad Nayeem told his mother over the telephone at 6:30am (Indian Standard Time, 5am UAE time).
Nayeem, who was kidnapped from Afghanistan's Herat province on April 21, was released by his captors on Sunday.
Nayeem, an employee of Dubai-based HEB International Logistics, had been working in Afghanistan.
His mother Chand Sultana told Gulf News from her residence in the south Indian city of Mangalore that after hearing the news the entire family prayed. "It's Eid for us at home today. I feel as though it's my son's birthday. Our house has been flooded with well wishers. People are distributing sweets to celebrate his release," she said.
Nayeem told Gulf News over the telephone that he was kept at gunpoint and prayers gave him strength to withstand the ordeal. "My hands and legs were not tied and my captors did not blindfold me. But they would threaten to kill me. I said a silent prayer to withstand the threats," he said.
"I am so relieved to be free and can't wait to be back home with my family."
Nayeem, father of three children, said initially he never spoke to the captors but later on he gathered enough courage to engage them in a dialogue.
"They played mind games with me. One minute, they would give me the impression that they were releasing me, the next minute they would point a gun at me."
"Once they asked me as to why Indians were working in Afghanistan and that they should leave the country. I replied that Indians were working all over the world and not just in Afghanistan."
Nayeem was allowed to speak to his wife while in captivity. "When I heard her voice it filled me with a renewed sense of hope that one day I will be free and won't die from a militant's bullet. From then on it became easier for me to endure my days in captivity.
"The place were I was held by my abductors was in a mountainous terrain unfit for humans. I longed for home food and sleep.
"The militants would give me few pieces of Afghan naan (bread) and a cup of tea once in a while. At times I would force myself to eat a piece of the bread with tea but on other days I did not bother to eat at all."
An Indian logistics officer said Nayeem was in good health but had lost some weight.
Joy
The first thing Nayeem did after his release was to speak to his mother in Mangalore and then to his wife Rafat Sultana who is currently staying with relatives in Mumbai.
His wife said: "I am the happiest person on earth today. When he informed me of his freedom I thanked Allah for the mercy he had bestowed on me, our children and our entire family. I am not sure when he will be back in India. We are all planning to go to New Delhi to receive him."
Sunil Shetty, the director of his company in Afghanistan, said that right from the night they learnt of the kidnapping, the company has been working in close cooperation with the Indian Embassy, the Afghan police and the internal agencies of Afghanistan.
"We [the company] kept our dialogue on with the kidnappers who would speak to us for only 30 to 40 seconds. It was very difficult to make them understand anything. The day after Nayeem's kidnapping the Afghan police along with their security agencies carried out operations at several hideouts. Finally, things worked out in our favour and Nayeem is free," he said.
Herat, Afghanistan (AFP) Mohammad Nayeem and a Nepalese national, Gurong Karna Bahadur, kidnapped a month ago walked for hours to reach their base in western Afghanistan yesterday after they were set free by their captors.
The intelligence chief of the western province of Herat said that the pair had been freed in an overnight operation, but this was rejected by Nayeem.
Nayeem said the kidnappers had told him and his Nepalese colleague to leave late Saturday without giving any explanation. He said they had walked eight hours to reach a police camp in Adraskan district, where they had been based before they were abducted. "Last night we started and came here," he said. "There was no operation."
Nayeem said he did not know who the kidnappers were or what their motive was.
In Kabul, a spokesman for the national intelligence department refused to give details of the release.
"I can only confirm that they have been freed from the claws of the kidnappers," said Sayed Ansari.
The men have undergone medical check-ups after arriving back at base and preparations were being made to fly them home, said Sayed Ibrar Hashimi, head of security at the camp.
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