London (TDI): The Pakistan government has urged British authorities to take decisive legal action against individuals involved in recent violent incidents outside the Pakistan High Commission in London, including a stone-pelting attack that occurred early Sunday morning.
In an official statement issued on Tuesday, the Pakistan High Commission condemned the latest attack, which took place at about 5:18am on April 27.
The assailant, identified by the UK police as Ankit Love, reportedly hurled stones and splashed saffron paint on the High Commission boundary wall, smashing several windows and staining the building’s nameplate. He was arrested shortly after the incident by the Metropolitan Police.
The High Commission linked the attack to a larger, more aggressive protest that happened days earlier on April 25, involving members of the Indian and British Indian community.
Demonstrators shouted anti-Pakistan and Islamophobic slogans, and clashed with law enforcers.
Read More: Protesters Face Off Outside Pakistan, Indian High Commissions in London
“We expect that the UK law enforcement agencies would prosecute Ankit, as well as the raucous demonstrators arrested on Friday, in accordance with the relevant British laws,” the statement said.
Expressing concern over the growing hostility, the statement reminded British government of its obligations under the Vienna Convention to protect diplomatic missions. It also reiterated its demand for increased security at Pakistani diplomatic posts across the country.
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“This is not the first incident where Pakistan’s High Commission or Consulates in the UK have been attacked,” the statement read.
The Pakistan High Commission said that it is in contact with the UK police to obtain more details about Ankit Love, whose nationality has not yet been disclosed.
Farkhund Yousafzai is an Associate Editor at The Diplomatic Insight.
