One German, 4 Afghan hostages alive-Taliban

KABUL, July 23 (Reuters) A German hostage reported to have been killed by the Taliban is alive and, along with four Afghans, is still being held, a spokesman for the militant group today said.

''The German national and four Afghans we reported had been killed are still alive,'' Qari Mohammad Yousuf, told Reuters from an unknown location by telephone.

The same spokesman had previously said two German engineers and the five Afghans with them had been killed.

He said the group holding them had told him they were about to kill the hostages as government troops were closing in on them and then he had lost touch with them as they made their escape.

Yousuf said the Taliban leadership wanted the release of 10 Taliban prisoners held by the Afghan government and the withdrawal of German troops from Afghanistan as conditions for freeing of the hostages.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said Berlin will not give in to the demands of the kidnappers to withdraw troops from Afghanistan.

German authorities have seen the body of the second German hostage, who died in captivity in Afghanistan. The body had gunshot wounds, a German Foreign Ministry spokesman said yesterday.

He said the exact cause of death was unclear.

Reuters SY GC2048