Afghanistan summons its Ambassador to Pakistan following kidnapping incident

Today, Sunday, the Afghan Foreign Ministry announced that Kabul has summoned its ambassador and other diplomats in Islamabad "following the abduction of the Afghan ambassador's daughter in Pakistan."

The Foreign Ministry said in a statement, "Following the abduction of the daughter of Afghan ambassador in Pakistan, Silsila Alikhil, the leadership of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan have recalled the Afghan envoy and other senior diplomats from Islamabad back to Kabul until all security threats are removed," demanding the arrest and prosecution of the kidnappers.

An Afghan delegation will visit Pakistan soon to assess the situation after which "more steps will be taken," Afghanistan's Foreign Ministry added.

The Afghan Foreign Ministry had summoned yesterday its Ambassador in Kabul and expressed its strong protest over the "abduction of the daughter of its Ambassador in Islamabad, Silsila Alikhil, by unknown individuals for several hours".

Saturday evening, Pakistani Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said that he had "received an order from Prime Minister Imran Khan to utilize all available means to arrest the culprits involved in the abduction of the Afghan Ambassador's daughter," adding that "Islamabad Police and other law enforcement agencies must investigate the incident on top priority, bring up the truth of the matter and apprehend the culprits within 48 hours”.

It is worth noting that Kabul accuses Islamabad of "offering a safe haven to 'Taliban' militants," since their regime was overthrown by the US-led coalition in Afghanistan by the end of 2001.

Meanwhile, Islamabad accuses Kabul of "turning a blind eye to militant groups launching attacks on Pakistan from its soil."

As fighting raged in Afghanistan, war of words heated up this week between the two neighbours, with First Vice President of Afghanistan Amrullah Saleh accusing the Pakistani military of providing "close air support to 'Taliban' in certain areas," which Pakistan totally denies.