A kidnapped doctor in Pakistan's restive southwestern province of Balochistan has been freed.
Sultan Tareen, the head of the Pakistan Medical Association in Balochistan, told RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal that Munaf Tareen called his family after being freed from kidnappers early on December 1.
He added that Tareen was freed in the remote Othal region nearly 10 weeks after his abduction.
Munaf Tareen, a senior cardiologist in Balochistan, was kidnapped on September 17 in Balochistan's capital Quetta.
It is not clear whether he was released after paying the $500,000 ransom his captors had demanded or was freed by the security forces.
His abduction had prompted protests by doctors.
Kidnappings for ransom are common in Balochistan, which is reeling from a separatist insurgency, military operations, and sectarian violence.
Sultan Tareen, the head of the Pakistan Medical Association in Balochistan, told RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal that Munaf Tareen called his family after being freed from kidnappers early on December 1.
He added that Tareen was freed in the remote Othal region nearly 10 weeks after his abduction.
Munaf Tareen, a senior cardiologist in Balochistan, was kidnapped on September 17 in Balochistan's capital Quetta.
It is not clear whether he was released after paying the $500,000 ransom his captors had demanded or was freed by the security forces.
His abduction had prompted protests by doctors.
Kidnappings for ransom are common in Balochistan, which is reeling from a separatist insurgency, military operations, and sectarian violence.
