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Pakistan
Confirms Closure Of Afghan Consulate
By
Amir Latif
Islam
Online Staff Writer
KARACHI,
Nov 10 (Islam Online) - Afghanistan's ruling Taliban regime
Friday
closed down its consulate in Karachi and withdrew the staff stationed there,
Maulana Rehmatullah Kakazada, the former Afghan Consul-General in Karachi, told
IslamOnline.
Pakistan's
military government, which is being pressured by the United States to sever its
ties with Taliban, asked the Taliban Thursday to close its diplomatic mission
immediately and withdraw its entire staff.
"I
am leaving for Kandahar within a day or two," said Kakazada. "I will
always remember Karachiites who have been helping Afghan Muslims beyond their
capacity."
Although,
Pakistan has assured the Afghan government that its consulates in Peshawar and
Quetta would function normally, formal orders to close down those respective
consulates
are expected to be issued soon, diplomatic sources said.
Pakistan's
foreign office gave no reason for the decision. However, a government official
– on the condition of anonymity - speculated that the decision may have been
taken because of "violent anti-U.S. demonstrations recently held in
Karachi."
Meanwhile,
diplomatic circles in Pakistan believe that the closure of the Afghan consulate
is the result of U.S. pressure. Pakistan, apparently at the behest of
Washington, recently asked the Afghan consul-general not to "exploit his
diplomatic status" to malign any country.
On
Tuesday, Pakistan also asked Taliban Ambassador Abdul Salam Zaeef to stop
holding press conferences and has warned him against making inflammatory remarks
against the United States, news agencies reported.
Pakistani
Foreign office spokesman Aziz Ahmad Khan said that the Zaeef was summoned on
Tuesday afternoon and “asked to observe the diplomatic norms.”
“Any
host country can ask a mission to stop statements or propaganda against any
third country which has friendly relations with the host country,” Khan told
Agence France Presse (AFP).
Surprised
over the move to close the embassy in Karachi, Pakistan's main religious parties
have condemned the government's decision. Some argued that similar measures
should also be taken against the U.S. embassy - which has continuously been
issuing literature in Pashtoo maligning the Taliban.
"This
is unfair that Taliban envoy is being gagged to express his country's point of
view on bombing and killings of civilians,” said Liaquat Baloch, the Deputy
Chief of Jammat-e-Islami, Pakistan's largest religious party. "Whereas
Americans are allowed to do whatever they want."
Foreign
Office spokesman Riaz Muhammad Khan said that the Afghan ambassador had not been
barred from holding press conferences but “has been asked to observe Third
World countries rules," he said.
The
spokesman added that the same rules also apply to U.S. embassy.
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