The ambassador was on his way to Kabul from the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar on February 11 when he disappeared along with his driver and bodyguard in the Khyber tribal region.

Azizuddin said he, his driver and bodyguard had been held for 27 days at the time the tape was filmed.

According to a senior Arabiya journalist, the ambassador said in the tape that Azizuddin spoke about "the release of any Muslim held in Pakistan whose release is demanded by Taliban."

This remark appeared to refer to Taliban commander Mullah Mansour Dadullah held by Pakistan, the Arabiya journalist said, adding the tape was sent to the offices of Dubai-based Arabiya.

Two days after he went missing, a spokesman for Pakistani Taliban militants denied they had kidnapped Azizuddin and the Foreign Ministry denied media speculation that the Taliban had demanded the release of Dadullah in exchange for the envoy.

The official said more than 40 Taliban fighters held captive by the authorities had been released over the past few days.

Pakistan's most senior Interior Ministry official earlier denied that the envoy was released as a result of any prisoner swap and said there had been some kind of action.

Azizuddin said he was unaware of any clash between the militants and security forces.

The Taliban released several members of the security forces in return for the release of the fighters, the official said. It was unclear whether the ambassador, one of Mehsud's main bargaining chips, was exchanged for a specific militant.

Azizuddin told a television channel he was driven by his captors for three hours and dropped off outside a paramilitary camp in Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan.

"I just walked in and introduced myself and from thereon I was brought here," he told Dawn News.