Pak ambassador to Afghanistan feared abducted in Khyber

Security forces raised the alarm when the envoy failed to reach the Torkham border post on time, state-run PTV said, adding a massive hunt had been launched to trace him.

The main road linking Pakistan and Afghanistan was closed for search operations.

Officials at another checkpost had earlier ordered the ambassador’s car to stop “because they saw some local people sitting in the front seat. But they did not stop,” chief administrative official in Khyber, Rasool Khan Wazir, was quoted as saying by AFP.

“Where they are we don’t know. We have launched a search,” Wazir added.

The ambassador went missing in an area where two Pakistani employees of the Red Cross disappeared earlier this month. Their fate is unknown. Pakistan’s tribal belt has been wracked by fighting between government forces and Al Qaeda and Taliban militants .

Pakistani foreign office spokesman Muhammad Sadiq said, “We are looking into the matter and at this stage we cannot deny or confirm the kidnapping of the ambassador.” Pakistan is an ally in the “war on terror” led by the US. Fears have been expressed over the instability in the region since Pakistan has nuclear weapons.