Militants in restive northwest Pakistan said Wednesday they had released 12 students who were kidnapped on suspicion of spying for the government. The group, aged between 19 and 20 and from the state-run Nazarabad High School in the Matta area of Swat valley, were seized on Tuesday. A spokesman for the militants, Haji Muslim Khan, told a foreign news agency: "These students were spying for the security forces. We released five students yesterday (Tuesday). "The remaining seven were released today (Wednesday) after their parents personally assured us that these students will not indulge in spying for the security forces."