Tariq Azizuddin is Pakistan

Pakistan

Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

's ambassador to Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

. He was ambassador to Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...

 when he was taken hostage by terrorists from the Tehrik-i-Taliban on Monday February 11, 2008.
Tariq was traveling, by road, from his home in Peshawar

Peshawar

Peshawar is the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the administrative center and central economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan....

, to Afghanistan's nearby capital, Kabul

Kabul

Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...

.
He was taken hostage along with his driver Gul Nawaz and bodyguard Amir Sultan in Pakistan's Khyber Tribal Agency, prior to passing through the border crossing at Towr Kham.http://www.thenews.com.pk/updates.asp?id=43779

The Taliban released a video to the Arab satellite channel al-Arabiya TV on April 19, 2008.

On May 16, 2008 his brother Tahir Azizuddin announced that Tariq was safe and had been freed. Nawaz and Sultan were also freed.http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/05/17/pakistan-ambassador.html
Pakistani authorities denied that Tariq's release was the culmination of a negotiated deal.
Nevertheless the BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

, the Pak Tribune, and the Asia Times

Asia Times

Asia Times was a newspaper launched in Thailand by Thai tycoon Sondhi Limthongkul in 1995. The newspaper hired talent from around the world to produce a regional English-language newspaper....

all reported there had been a prisoner swap.

The Asia Times article asserted there was a deal—with Baitullah Mehsud

Baitullah Mehsud

Baitullah Mehsud was a leading militant in Waziristan, Pakistan, and the leader of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan . He formed the TTP from an alliance of about five militant groups in December 2007. He is thought by U.S...

.
The Asia Times article stated that 55 militants were released, and that a payment of 20 million Pakistani Rupee

Pakistani rupee

The rupee is the currency of Pakistan. The issuance of the currency is controlled by the State Bank of Pakistan, the central bank of the country. The most commonly used symbol for the rupee is Rs, used on receipts when purchasing goods and services. In Pakistan, the rupee is referred to as the...

s was paid.
The Asia Times article named Mufti Yousuf

Mufti Yousuf

A citizen of Pakistan known as Mufti Yousuf is an alleged Taliban leader and spokesman.On 15 October 2001Mufti Yousufwas paccompanying internationaljournalists in Jalalabad....

 and Muslim Dost as two of released militants
The Asia Times article reported that Maulana Abdul Aziz was expected to be released soon.
The Asia Times article reported that negotiations stalled over the kidnappers demand that Mullah Obaidullah be handed over, and the 20 million rupee payment was in lieu of his release.