The Foreign Office (FO) on Tuesday strongly condemned the actions of the Acting Consul General of Afghanistan Mohibullah Shakir for failing to observe standard diplomatic protocol during a ceremony in Peshawar.
The incident occurred when Mohibullah Shakir refused to stand during the playing of Pakistan’s national anthem at the Rahmatul Alameen (PBUH) Conference held at the invitation of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur.
In a statement issued by FO spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said that “insulting the national anthem of the host country is against diplomatic principles,” and termed Shakir’s actions as “reprehensible and condemnable.”
The FO has lodged a strong protest with Afghan authorities in both Islamabad and Kabul.
“The Afghan envoy’s behaviour was a clear violation of diplomatic norms and showed disregard for the national customs of Pakistan,” Mumtaz Zahra Baloch added in response to media queries regarding the incident.
