Pakistan protests detention, torture of embassy officials by Afghan spy agency

ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office on Wednesday summoned the Afghan Deputy Head of Mission to protest over the detention of two employees of Pakistan embassy in Afghanistan.

According to sources, Afghanistan’s spy agency National Directorate of Security took into custody Protocol Assistant Hassan Khanzada and driver Syed Muneer Shah along with their car from a shop.

The agency kept them in confinement for three hours, during which they were also tortured, sources said.

The employees were subsequently released and reached Pakistan embassy after the latter took up the matter with Afghanistan.

The Afghan charge d'affaires was conveyed that the incident was a violation of the Vienna Convention of Diplomatic Relations (1961) and against the spirit of the cordial relations enjoyed by the two countries.

The FO has asked the Afghan government to urgently look into the matter and ensure the security and safety of Pakistani diplomatic personnel so that no such incident takes place in future.