“Safety Concerns Prompt Saudi Diplomats to Leave Afghanistan Temporarily”

(Reuters) – Saudi diplomats have left Afghanistan for “training” and will return, the Taliban government said on Monday, although three sources familiar with the matter said security concerns contributed to their departure.

A diplomatic source and two other sources said Saudi Arabia’s diplomats left by air and moved to Pakistan late last week amid warnings of heightened risks of attack in the Afghan capital Kabul.

The Taliban said their departure was temporary and not for security reasons. “Some Saudi Embassy staff went out for some kind of training and will be returning,” said Zabiullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Taliban government.

The Pakistani Foreign Ministry referred Reuters to the Saudi Embassy in Islamabad for comment. The government communications office and Riyadh’s foreign ministry did not respond to requests for comment.

It was not immediately clear how long Saudi diplomats intended to be stationed outside of Afghanistan, or how many had left the country.

Several countries have operated their Afghan embassies from Pakistan and Qatar since US-led foreign coalition forces withdrew from the country and the Taliban took power in 2021 after a 20-year insurgency.

A few nations have maintained a diplomatic presence in Afghanistan, including Russia, whose embassy was the target of a suicide bombing at its front gate, killing two Russian employees and four Afghan nationals.

Islamic State militants claimed the attack and several other attacks on foreigners, including one on a hotel popular with Chinese businessmen and a failed assassination attempt on Pakistan’s mission chief at its embassy.

Islamic State has also for years targeted security installations in Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter and the birthplace of Islam.

The Taliban have said they are focused on eliminating Islamic State and other security threats and will make every effort to protect foreign interests in Afghanistan.

(Reported by Reuters Newsroom; Edited by Mark Heinrich)

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