No deal with kidnappers of Japanese student, says Tehran

Oct. 15 - Tehran on Monday said that Iran would make no compromise with the kidnappers of a Japanese student in south-eastern Iran.

"Iran has had no compromising negotiations with the kidnappers and will neither pay any ransom nor make any exchange," Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad-Ali Hosseini said in a press briefing.

Satoshi Nakamura, 23, was reportedly kidnapped last Monday in Bam, Kerman province, by the notorious criminal band of Ismael Shahbakhsh who has demanded the release of his son from jail in return of the Japanese student.

Confirming that the Japanese national was still alive, the spokesman said that Iranian security forces would spare no efforts to enable his swift release.

The spokesman denied Japanese press reports that Nakamura would soon be released but said he nonetheless hoped that this would soon be the case.

The kidnapping case is being dealt with by the Rassoul Akram security headquarters in Kerman, which is affiliated to the para- military revolutionary guards.

Nakamura is believed to been have transferred to the neighbouring Sistan-Beluchistan province or even to Pakistan, but no official statement has yet been made on his whereabouts.

The Japanese government also denied receiving any information on Nakamura's release, Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura said Monday.

The abductee's father on Monday released a statement saying that the family hopes for Nakamura's early release and safe return home at the earliest possible date.

The father also apologized for causing trouble and said the family had earlier opposed his son's trip to Iran. The student was allowed to go in the end but was also told to avoid dangerous locations, Japanese media said./-