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AP / DIAA HADID, Associat · Guest

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) -- The Palestinian prime minister
reported progress in efforts to free a kidnapped British journalist,
saying Wednesday that negotiators have persuaded the captors to
reduce their demands.
The kidnappers of British Broadcasting Corp. correspondent
Alan Johnston initially had seven demands, said Prime Minister
Ismail Haniyeh. "During debate, those demands were reduced to
three," Haniyeh told reporters, confirming earlier reports that
officials were negotiating with the kidnappers. He did not say what
the remaining demands were.
Johnston was seized at gunpoint in Gaza City on March 12 and
has not been seen or heard from since.
Haniyeh sent a series of letters to to "clarify to these
people that this issue doesn't serve the interest of our people, and
the Muslims," said an aide to the prime minister, Ahmed Youssef.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas reiterated Wednesday
that security forces know Johnston's whereabouts, and suggested they
were holding off on a rescue raid for fear of harming the captive.
"We know where the journalist is, and we want to preserve his life
and we want to save him, and this needs time," Abbas was quoted as
saying by the official Wafa news agency.
"We are passing through a sensitive time," said Youssef. "We
are trying to put some moral pressure on them."
Youssef said the kidnappers had not demanded any ransom and
suggested they were a militant Muslim group.
"Money is not the issue. The issue is an incorrect
understanding of Islam, how to deal with foreigners in general, an
incorrect understanding of Islam among some," he said.
Youssef declined to discuss the kidnappers' identities or
ideology. "Any discussions about it will harm this issue," he said.
Hamas and Abbas' Fatah Party make up the joint Palestinian
unity government.
The BBC said it could not comment on the latest comments by
officials.
"We continue to be told by Palestinian authorities that they
are doing everything they can to release Alan," said Simon Wilson,
editor of the news organization's Middle East bureau.
Several foreign journalists have been kidnapped over the
past two years in Gaza, but most cases have ended within a day or
two. No one has been charged or arrested in previous kidnappings.
Johnston's captivity has been by far the longest.
A little-known group claimed to have killed Johnston in
April, but provided no evidence of their claim. Top officials have
since said the kidnappers have confirmed that Johnston remains in
good health.