Security forces on Friday stepped up their hunt for an al Qaeda-linked former Guantanamo Bay prisoner who masterminded the kidnapping of two Chinese engineers, security officials said.
The five-day kidnapping episode came to a bloody end on Thursday, leaving one Chinese hostage and five abductors dead in a rescue operation by army commandos in the wild tribal belt of South Waziristan near the Afghan border.
Tribal militant leader Abdullah Mahsud, who spent 25 months in US-run Camp X-ray in Cuba until his release in March, had ordered the kidnapping to pressure the government into halting counter-terrorism operations in the territory, believed to be a sanctuary for hundreds of al Qaeda fugitives.
"Our security forces are all geared up and we are taking all measures to bring to justice those behind the kidnapping," Information Minister Sheikh Rashid told AFP.
He said the kidnapping was a conspiracy to hurt Pak-China relations, adding that Islamabad would do "everything to eliminate such a threat".
President Pervez Musharraf told his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao in a message late Thursday that the culprits behind the kidnapping would be caught and punished severely.
Musharraf said "the masterminds behind this terrorist action will be pursued relentlessly and meted out the most severe punishment."
He also assured Hu that Pakistan would take "all necessary measures" to ensure the safety and protection of Chinese working in Pakistan.
China is Pakistan's strongest ally and Islamabad has relied heavily on Beijing for its defence needs. China is also financing several projects, including the Gwadar Port project. Hundreds of Chinese are employed in these projects.
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