Afghan forces rescue Gilani’s son 3 years after he was kidnapped in Pakistan

KABUL: The Afghan National Security Forces have rescued the son of Yousuf RAza Gilani, former Pakistani Prime Minister, three years after he was kidnapped from Pakistan and was reported taken to Afghanistan, it has been reported.

“In an operation by Afghan Special Forces in Ghanzi Province this morning, Mr. Ali Haidar Gilani, the son of Pakistan former Prime Minister Yusuf Reza Gilani was recovered after 3 years of captivity from an Al-Qaeda affiliated group,” a statement by the Embassy of Afghanistan in Islamabad said.

The statement further added “He is well and will be repatriated to his family soon. Earlier I called Mr. Yusuf Reza Gilani and informed him about the good news. He was ecstatically delighted as expected and grateful of President Ghani’s personal attention to his son’s safe release. He also thanked the Afghan Security Forces for bringing a happy ending to a dreadful family saga for them.”

According to the local media reports, Ali Haidar Gilani was recovered from the southeastern Ghazni province of Afghanistan during a joint operation by Afghan and US forces.

Citing the official sources, the reports further added that Afghan National Security Adviser, Mohammad Hanif Atmar, in a telephone call to Prime Minister’s senior aide Sartaj Aziz confirmed the release of Gilani.

Meanwhile, the Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, tweeted that “PM Yousuf Raza Gilani received a call from ambassador of Afghanistan. His son Haider Gilani has been recovered in a successful operation.”

Gilani was kidnapped by gunmen during an attack in Farrkhabad, near the Matital Road in Multan, in May 2013.

His two associates were killed during the kidnapping which took place on 9th May as he was contesting for the general election from PPP-200 constituency in Multan., according to the reports.

The family of Gilani is reported to be one of the most powerful in the central town of Multan and a key clan in the PPP, whose campaign for re-election had been dramatically curtailed by Tehrik-i-Taliban threats at the time. -KP