US not to negotiate with Al-Qaeda over hostage

The White House has declined to negotiate with Al-Qaeda about an elderly US hostage, kidnapped from Pakistan and being held by the militant group since last August.

The White House spokesperson during Monday's briefing also said the Obama administration condemns "in strongest terms" the kidnapping and calls for the immediate release of Warren Weinstein, a 70-year-old aid worker for US Agency for International Development (USAID), Xinhua reported Tuesday.

"The U.S. government will continue making every effort to see Mr. Weinstein released safely to his family, but we cannot and will not negotiate with Al-Qaeda," said spokesman Jay Carney.

Appearing in a video released Sunday for the first time since being abducted last year, Weinstein urged Obama to agree to the demands of Al-Qaeda, which claimed the responsibility of the kidnapping last December.

"My life is in your hands, Mr. President," he said. "If you accept the demands, I live. If you don't accept the demands, then I die."
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