Silsila Alikhil, the daughter of Afghanistan's Ambassador to Pakistan, was kidnapped for several hours on 17 July while she was riding a rented vehicle in Islamabad. She is said to have been “tortured” and “assaulted” during her captivity. Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan is ensuring his investigators take this probe as a “top priority”.
The Taliban* on Monday called on Pakistan to “punish the perpetrators” behind the kidnapping of Silsila Alikhil, the daughter of Afghanistan's Ambassador to Pakistan Najibullah Alikhil, after Kabul recalled its envoy to Islamabad to protest the incident.
The Taliban's chief spokesperson Suhail Shaheen remarked that the abduction of the 26-year-old woman was “against humanity” and should be probed so that it doesn't give rise to “hate” between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Afghanistan on Sunday recalled its Ambassador and senior diplomats from Pakistan “until all security threats are addressed including the arrest and trial of the perpetrators of abduction”, an Afghan Foreign Ministry statement said.
Islamabad has described Kabul's decision to recall its diplomats as “unfortunate and regrettable”, as it called on Afghan authorities to reconsider the move.
The diplomatic crisis between the two Asian neighbours comes against the backdrop of increasing hostilities between the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) and the Taliban, which has been vying to take control of the war-ravaged nation as the US…
