Pakistani abducted diplomats 'safely recovered' in Afghanistan

Two Pakistani diplomatic who were abducted in Afghanistan last month have been "safely recovered" in a security operation Wednesday (26), the foreign ministry in Islamabad said.

"The two diplomatic officials of the consulate general of Pakistan in Jalalabad who were abducted while travelling from Jalalabad to Torkham on 16 June 2017 have been safely recovered today in Afghanistan," the ministry said in a statement.

Afghanistan president Ashraf Ghani phoned Pakistan's Charge d'Affaires in Kabul to inform that the Afghan security forces had recovered the two Pakistani officials in a security operation, the statement said.

The pair had been handed over to Pakistani embassy in Kabul and would be flown home soon, it added.

Relations between the neighbours have soured over claims that Pakistan secretly supports insurgents trying to topple the Afghan government.

Afghan officials frequently accuse Pakistan of supporting the Taliban and providing sanctuary for the guerrillas on its soil in hopes of maintaining influence in Afghanistan.

The Taliban ruled Afghanistan from 1996 until they were toppled by a US-led invasion in 2001. They have battled the Kabul government and its foreign allies ever since.