NATO troops in Afghanistan
have rescued a reporter
of the New York Times newspaper
who had been held by the Taliban
in the northern province of Kunduz since Saturday.
The New York Times said the journalist Stephen Farrell
was unharmed after being released in the gun battle.
Chris Morris reports from Kabul.
A military operation led
by NATO forces rescued Stephen Farrell from a village
in the northern province of Kunduz
where he had been kidnapped last week
while reporting on the aftermath of a NATO airstrike.
In remarks quoted on the New York Times website
he says he heard British and Afghan voices
as bullets started flying around.
That suggests that British troops were involved
in the rescue
although there has been no confirmation of that.
Stephen Farrell's colleague Sultan Munadi,
an Afghan interpreter
who's worked for the New York Times
for several years
was killed in the exchange of fire.