Afghan turns down Pak request for Maulvi Faqir
23 Feb 2013 8:19 AM IST
Afghanistan refused to hand over senior Pakistani Taliban commander Maulvi Faqir Mohammad on Friday hours after Islamabad requested his extradition following his capture by Afghan forces.
Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar had taken up the handing over of Faqir Mohammad during a phone conversation with her Afghan counterpart Zalmai Rassoul on Wednesday night but Afghan Foreign Ministry spokesman Janan Musazai ruled out his extradition.
The Taliban commander was captured by Afghan intelligence operatives on Monday. The Afghan Foreign Ministry shot down Pakistan’s request, saying there was no agreement between the two countries for exchanging prisoners. The Afghan government’s investigation into the recent capture of Mohammad ‘is still ongoing’, Afghan Foreign Ministry spokesman Musazai said. In a statement, Musazai indicated the refusal might be a tit-for-tat move as Pakistan had rejected Afghanistan’s request to hand over certain Afghan Taliban prisoners during a recent tripartite summit in London.
Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar had taken up the handing over of Faqir Mohammad during a phone conversation with her Afghan counterpart Zalmai Rassoul on Wednesday night but Afghan Foreign Ministry spokesman Janan Musazai ruled out his extradition.
The Taliban commander was captured by Afghan intelligence operatives on Monday. The Afghan Foreign Ministry shot down Pakistan’s request, saying there was no agreement between the two countries for exchanging prisoners. The Afghan government’s investigation into the recent capture of Mohammad ‘is still ongoing’, Afghan Foreign Ministry spokesman Musazai said. In a statement, Musazai indicated the refusal might be a tit-for-tat move as Pakistan had rejected Afghanistan’s request to hand over certain Afghan Taliban prisoners during a recent tripartite summit in London.
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