By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan accused India on Sunday of orchestrating an attack on its high commission in London, where protesters vandalised the building with stones and saffron-colored paint, intensifying a diplomatic row between the two nuclear-armed rivals over an assault in occupied Kashmir.
A group of protesters targeted the Pakistan High Commission last week, smashing windows and splattering the exterior with saffron-colored paint. In India, saffron is considered a sacred colour, primarily associated with Hinduism, and is prominently featured in the national flag. A number of protesters, who gathered outside the Pakistan high commission, were seen wearing saffron-colored clothes.
London’s Metropolitan Police arrested two individuals for their alleged involvement in the attack.
The London police have not revealed the identity of the suspect, but scores of Indian nationals gathered outside the London embassy to protest over an April 22 attack that killed 26 tourists.
India has blamed Pakistan for the assault—the deadliest in the disputed region since 2000—alleging cross-border orchestration. Islamabad has rejected the accusation, offering to join a transparent investigation.
Pakistan’s High Commissioner to the UK, Mohammad Faisal, detailed the attack, saying it occurred around 4:30 a.m. when a man pelted the building with stones and paint. “These are white stones, which are quite big and are not found here. He brought it from somewhere else,” Faisal told reporters, pointing to a bag the man carried containing the saffron paint that marred the mission’s logo and walls.
“Several glasses were broken,” he added. “Police came and arrested that man. Now that man is in police custody, they are not telling us his nationality and identification details.”
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Sunday accused India of being responsible for an attack on the Pakistan High Commission in London, sharpening tensions between the two nuclear-armed rivals.
Faisal voiced alarm over the security of Pakistani staff, many of whom live near the mission. “This is a very big cause of concern for us as our security is at stake you know, our officials live on this street a little far from here,” he said.
He confirmed that the matter had been raised with Britain’s Foreign Office, urging action against those responsible. “We will urge the British government to take action on this and punish the perpetrator behind this.”
In Islamabad, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar pointed the finger at India, accusing its agencies and state of sponsoring the London attack.
“A very unfortunate incident took place in London, our high commission was attacked twice, and stones were thrown,” Tarar told foreign journalists. “The people who are responsible are being sponsored by Indian agencies and the Indian state.”
The minister said the arrested suspects were driven by India’s “extremist ideology” and linked the incident to what he called transnational assassinations of Sikh leaders in Canada and the United States, saying, “If you can kill people internationally in Canada and the US, then nothing will stop you from attacking a few foreign missions.”
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