Pakistan: Peshawar police find U.S. diplomats with illegal weapons

In Peshawar police seized several U.S consular employees after illegal weapons were found in their vehicle at a checkpoint. The diplomats had refused to let the police search the vehicle but the search went ahead anyway.

U.S. reaction was swift and the diplomats were released immediately. The U.S. consul said that the group were returning from an “education event for underprivileged children.” There was no mention of the weapons in the statement!

This incident will just rub more salt in the wounded relationship between Pakistan and the U.S. Pakistan has complained many times that spies and special operatives are often disguised as diplomatic employees to gain immunity. This happened in the infamous case of Raymond Davis who killed two Pakistanis. Davis was licensed as a consular employee when he was actually working for the CIA. Even so the U.S. demanded he be released as a consular employee. Pakistani law does not allow diplomats to carry weapons.

So far negotiations to reopen transit routes in Pakistan to Afghanistan have failed.. As a condition of the reopening Pakistan has asked for cessation of drone strikes and an apology for a border incident in which Pakistani troops were killed. Drone attacks continue and there is as yet no apology.For more see this article.