Afghanistan arrests ‘foreign IS member’ for Pakistan embassy attack

ISLAMABAD: A foreign member of the Islamic State (IS) group has been arrested in connection with an attack last week on Pakistan’s embassy in the Afghan capital, the Taliban’s chief spokesman said on Monday.

A security guard was wounded by shots fired at the embassy in Friday’s attack, which Islamabad described as an assassination attempt against the head of the mission.

No country officially recognises Afghanistan’s Taliban government, but Pakistan kept its embassy open even as the hardline Islamists took over in August last year, and maintains a full diplomatic mission.

Afghan government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said Monday that special forces had arrested the person responsible for the embassy attack. “This person is a citizen of a foreign country and a member of IS,” he said.

“The investigation revealed that this attack was jointly organised by IS and rebels. Some foreign malicious circles are behind the attack and the aim was to create distrust between the two brotherly countries.”Mujahid declined to say what nationality the suspect was, or if it was the same person other officials reported had been arrested hours after the incident.

Pakistan’s foreign ministry said on Monday that the ambassador, Ubaid ur Rehman Nizamani, was now in Islamabad “for consultations”, but said there were no plans to close the embassy or withdraw staff.