Shahbaz Taseer said radio 'kept me living' during captivity

He made these disclosures during an inteview with BBC Sports. He said that he endured immense suffering and torture during his time as a hostage, but it didn’t take away his motivation to keep “living” against all the odds.

A radio tuned to BBC Sportsworld allowed him to listen to the commentaries of his favourite football club Manchester United. “The radio changed everything for me, it kept me sane. I would look forward to every Saturday and Sunday to listen to Sportsworld.”

Taseer who is also a dedicated fan of Manchester United said that he can not explain it but the radio gave him peace. “It’s the best possible thing that could have happened to someone in an unfortunate position as me at the time,” he said.

A few days earlier, Taseer was delighted to received a signed jersey from several players of his favorite football club Manchester United.

Taseer said that the first news he received was about the shocking death of Colonel Gaddaffi in Libya after more than a year-and-half. After that he found about Syria and what was happening in the rest of the world.

Shahbaz also revealed this was not have been possible without his guard who also happened to be a football fan. However, the guard was not allowed to listen to the matches as because the group considered it a sin and prohibited in Islam.