5 abducted Iranian border guards freed in Pakistan

Tehran : Five of 12 Iranian border guards kidnapped last month by an Iranian militant group were freed on Thursday in Pakistan, the chief commander of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said on Thursday.

The released guards will soon return home, Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari said, Xinhua reported.

Efforts are underway to secure the release of the remaining captives, said Jafari.

The Iranian border guards were kidnapped on Oct. 16 by the Pakistan-based Iranian Sunni extremist group, Jaish al-Adl (Army of Justice), at the Mirjaveh border point in Iran's southeastern Sistan and Baluchestan Province and were transferred to Pakistan.

"The kidnappers are seeking to exchange the abducted guards for several of their accomplices that are behind bars in the Islamic Republic for committing crimes," Jafari said.

However, this request is not acceptable, he added.