Afghanistan calls back ambassador, senior officials from Pakistan

Islamabad, July 18

The diplomatic crisis between Pakistan and Afghanistan deepened on Sunday after Kabul announced that it would withdraw its ambassador and other senior staff from Islamabad after the abduction and torture of the daughter of its envoy to Pakistan.

Silsila Alikhil, the 26-year-old daughter of Afghanistan’s ambassador to Pakistan Najibullah Alikhil was abducted, tortured and assaulted on Friday by unknown persons in Islamabad. She was abducted while riding a rented vehicle and was held for several hours before being released. She was found near the F-9 Park area of the capital with torture marks on her body. “The leadership of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan has called back Afghanistan’s ambassador and senior diplomats from Pakistan until all security threats are addressed including the arrest and trial of the perpetrators of abduction,” the Afghan foreign ministry said in a statement. — PTI