July 23 (Bloomberg) -- Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan extended by a day the deadline for releasing 23 South Korean hostages they've threatened to kill unless an equal number of the movement's prisoners are freed.

The Islamic militants put back the deadline to 11:30 p.m. Seoul time today, a spokesman for South Korea's Foreign Ministry, who asked not to be identified, said by telephone in the capital. Deputy Foreign Minister Cho Jung Pyo led a South Korean team that flew into Kabul yesterday to spearhead efforts to free the hostages.

The ``safety of the abducted Koreans is the top priority,'' Chun Ho Sun, a spokesman for the president's office, said at a daily briefing in Seoul. ``A government-led taskforce team in Afghanistan remains in contact with militants there,'' he said, adding there were no reports so far that the South Koreans had been harmed.

The Taliban is also demanding South Korea remove its 200 soldiers from Afghanistan, who were scheduled to be withdrawn at the end of the year. Talks over the hostages were ``not going well,'' Agence France-Presse reported today, citing Taliban spokesman Yousuf Ahmadi.

The insurgents also kidnapped two Germans last week and demanded Germany withdraws its military force. Chancellor Angela Merkel said late yesterday that Germany won't be blackmailed into pulling its 3,000 soldiers out of Afghanistan.

Church Group

One of the German hostages died in captivity, probably of a heart attack, while the second may be alive, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said July 21.

The South Koreans were kidnapped July 19 on a highway in Ghazni Province as their bus traveled from Kabul to the southern city of Kandahar, the New York Times said. They were members of a Protestant church group on a 10-day relief mission. Most are women in their 20s and 30s, some of whom are nurses and teachers.

Afghan and international forces began an operation in Ghazni province to surround the area where the hostages are located, Afghan Defense Ministry spokesman Zahir Azimi said over the weekend.

The South Korean Foreign Ministry has issued a ban on travel to Afghanistan. The government already prohibits its nationals from traveling to Iraq and Somalia.

``The talks are continuing, but it seems they are not going well,'' AFP quoted Taliban spokesman Ahmadi as saying by telephone from an undisclosed location. ``If they continue in this way, I think the hostages will be killed.''

Ahmadi said a delegation representing the Afghan government didn't have the authority to free Taliban prisoners, AFP added.

To contact the reporters on this story: Seonjin Cha in Seoul at scha2@bloomberg.net; Kim Kyoungwha in Seoul kkim19@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: July 23, 2007 05:29 EDT