Pakistan-Taliban relations on Thursday hit a new low with Islamabad ordering the Afghan militia to close down its consulate in the port city of Karachi without assigning any reasons, two days after its ambassador was directed to limit his activities and barred from holding daily media briefings. Pakistan foreign office spokesman, Aziz Mohammad Khan, said the consulate at Karachi, one of the four diplomatic missions the Taliban have in Pakistan, has been asked to be closed down and its staff withdrawn immediately, except the caretakers.
We have asked the Afghan embassy to withdraw all its personnel from its consulate in Karachi immediately, He told reporters while declining to give any further information. Khan, however, said Taliban consulates in the border towns of Quetta and Peshawar besides its embassy in Islamabad continue to function.
Asked why only the consulate in Karachi has been signalled out for the closure, he said it is the decision of the government and I have no further comment to make on it.
Bureau Report