Pakistan’s Special Representative for Afghanistan Muhammad Sadiq on Saturday asked the Afghan government to “beef up the security of our embassy and its personnel”.
The demand comes a day after the attack on Pakistan’s embassy in Kabul yesterday that targeted the Chargé d’Affaires (CdA) to Afghanistan Ubaidur Rehman Nizamani. Nizamani was unscathed but his guard was critically wounded.
In a series of tweets, Sadiq said: “Our top most priority is the security of members of our mission. First and foremost, the Afghan interim government will need to beef up the security of our embassy and its personnel.”
He assured that the “government of Pakistan will also provide necessary resources to further enhance security of our diplomats to ensure continued and effective discharge of duties by them in the most important foreign Capital for Pakistan”.
While Nizamani remained safe, security guard Sepoy Israr Mohammad, was “critically injured” in the attack while protecting the mission head.
Sadiq said that the sepoy “who took bullets on chest” was “evacuated to Combined Military Hospital in Peshawar last night by a special plane”.
He saluted the “extraordinary courage and devotion to duty” of the guard and wished him a speedy recovery.
An embassy official told AFP that a lone attacker “came behind the cover of houses and started firing”.
Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran said one suspect was arrested after security forces rushed to the embassy and stopped the ongoing firing.
He said details of the clearance operation would be shared later, adding that weapons were recovered.
The Afghan foreign ministry and several Pakistani officials condemned the attack.
US calls for ‘transparent’ investigation into attack
In a weekly press briefing today, US State Department spokesperson Ned Price called for a “full and transparent” investigation into the attack.
“United States condemns the attack on the Pakistani Embassy in Kabul targeting its head of mission, Ubaid Nizamani, a senior diplomat,” Price said.
“We offer our sympathies and wish a quick recovery to those affected by the violence. The United States is deeply concerned by the attack on a foreign diplomat, and we call for a full and transparent investigation,” he added.
Meanwhile, Chargé d’Affaires of the US Mission to Afghanistan Karen Decker tweeted: “Outraged at the attack on my diplomatic counterpart Ubaid Nizamani.”
She said she was grateful that Nizamani was safe and wished a quick recovery to the security guard who was injured. “I join the call for a swift, thorough and transparent investigation,” Decker added.
UNSC stresses on holding perpetrators responsible
Separately, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) also condemned the attack in the “strongest terms” and called for ensuring the safety of diplomatic and consular premises.
“The members of the Security Council called on all relevant parties to respect and ensure the safety and security of diplomatic and consular premises and personnel of United Nations Member States,” it said in a statement.
“The members of the Security Council stressed the fundamental principle of the inviolability of diplomatic and consular premises, and the obligations on receiving States under the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, to take all appropriate steps to protect diplomatic and consular premises against any intrusion or damage and to prevent any disturbance of the peace of these missions or impairment of their dignity and any attack on diplomatic premises, agents and consular officers.”
The statement added that UNSC members underlined the need to hold perpetrators, organisers, financiers, and sponsors of such reprehensible acts of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice.
“They urged all States, in accordance with their obligations under international law and relevant Security Council resolutions, to cooperate actively with all relevant authorities,” it concluded.