Abduction of Afghan envoy's daughter: FM says 'facts to be brought to light'

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said that the Afghan foreign minister has been contacted today to review the decision to withdraw diplomats from Pakistan after the alleged abduction of the Afghan envoy’s daughter, ARY News reported on Monday.

Shah Mehmood Qureshi, while addressing a press conference alongside National Security Adviser (NSA) Moeed Yusuf and Inspector General (IG) Islamabad police today, said that he contacted his Afghan counterpart at 10:00 am today and asked him to review the decision for withdrawal Afghan envoy and other diplomats from Pakistan.

The foreign minister said that the government was not intended to keep secrecy on the Afghan envoy’s daughter abduction case and all facts will be revealed before the media.

He said that Prime Minister Imran Khan is personally monitoring the investigation as the abduction case was a sensitive matter. He added that the security arrangements were increased for the Afghan envoy and the staff.

READ: ABDUCTION DROP SCENE: PROBE ‘DISCREDITS’ STATEMENTS BY AFGHAN ENVOY’S DAUGHTER

FM Qureshi said that Pakistan needs Afghanistan’s cooperation to conclude the probe and Islamabad is willing to bring the responsible people to justice. He added that the authorities have shared a questionnaire with the Afghan envoy to get known about the facts.

“We need to continue the dialogue process with Afghanistan and has the intention to completely coordinate with the Afghan government. We will also share the information with them. We desire to take forward the investigation process in a transparent manner to conclude.”

“I don’t want to comment anything about the investigation as it is a sensitive case and we have to go ahead with seriousness and caution. We should be careful in our statements too. There is a lot to say here, however, we are exhibiting caution despite having answers to many questions.”

READ: POLICE FILE FIR OF ALLEGED ABDUCTION OF AFGHAN ENVOY’S DAUGHTER

“Afghan envoy should return and we are responsible for the security. Pakistan will fully cooperate with the visiting team from Afghanistan. Some elements want to interrupt the Afghan peace process and the one involved in interference in Afghanistan cannot be an ally to Afghanistan and the region.”

National Security Adviser (NSA) Moeed Yusuf said that a narrative based on a report was being spread around the world despite the fact that there was no truth in the social media reports.

Yusuf said that propaganda was being run against Pakistan using the same Indian social media accounts that had been used in past. He added that India does not want better ties between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Yusuf said that Pakistan is facing hybrid warfare and the network of information warfare being used against the country. A fake photo of the Afghan envoy to Pakistan Najibullah Alikhil’s daughter was shared on a verified account of India besides running the anti-Pakistan trends in India and Afghanistan.