Kabul - Police and Afghan villagers found the dead body of a Japanese aid worker on Wednesday morning, who was abducted by four armed men the previous day, officials said.

"I can confirm that the dead body of our colleague has been found in Naw area of Khewa district in a mountain and the body has been seen and confirmed by our other colleagues in the area," Noor Zaman, an official from Peshawar-Kai, a Japanese aid group, told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

"The police forces in the area are waiting for explosive specialists, because they suspect that there might be a mine placed under his body," Zaman said.

Shukerullah Durani, district administrative chief of Khewa district also confirmed that the body of the hostage was found and said that he was shot dead by the kidnappers.

Kazuya Ito, 31, an employee of Peshawar-Kai, a Japanese aid group, along with his Afghan driver was kidnapped in Khewa district of eastern Nangahar province on Tuesday morning as he was on his way to inspect an ongoing irrigation project in the area.

Taliban militants also on Tuesday reportedly claimed responsibility for the abduction and said that the Japanese hostage had been killed during a clash between Taliban fighters and Afghan security forces.

Ito's driver was released later on Tuesday by the kidnappers.

Ito had been conducting volunteer work as an agricultural specialist for Peshawar-kai since December 2003. The NGO has been assisting in digging wells and building irrigation systems. (dpa)