(KUNA) -- Afghan forces violated Pakistani territory and abducted 10 persons, including five paramilitary troopers, in a new episode of tension between the two neighboring countries, said an official on Wednesday. Provincial government spokesman, Razaq Bugti, told Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) the kidnapped people had been collecting firewood at Qila Saifullah near Tirkha border post in Southwestern Baluchistan. He said Afghan forces had entered Pakistani territory and took away the Pakistani nationals with them into Afghanistan. The official refuted Afghan claims these Pakistanis had been within Afghan territory. Bugti added tribal elders of the two sides were in contact and that the kidnapped Pakistanis were expected to be released later today.
Meanwhile, Islamabad dismissed Kabul's claims of apprehending a Pakistani intelligence officer for espionage as "fabricated".
"This is all fabricated. They could have used coercive measures to make him say things which have no relevance to reality," said Foreign Office spokesperson Tasnim Aslam. "There is no Pakistani spy in Afghanistan," she reiterated. |