Iranian diplomat kidnapped in Pakistan

Islamabad, Nov 13 (IANS) An Iranian diplomat was kidnapped and his security guard killed Thursday by unidentified gunmen in Pakistan's lawless northwestern region as Tehran demanded full security for its diplomatic corps, official IRNA news agency reported.

Iran's envoy to Pakistan Mashallah Shakeri said his government was in touch with Pakistani authorities to rescue the kidnapped diplomat but insisted that Islamabad must stretch to ensure safety of all foreign mission personnel, including the Iranians.

Commercial attache Heshmatollah Attarzadeh Niaki was seized when he was travelling to the Iranian consulate in the upscale Hayatabad neighbourhood of Peshawar, the capital of the North West Frontier Province.

The driver was killed in the attack and Attarzadeh was taken to an unknown place by the attackers, the police said.

The attack came a day after gunmen killed a US aid worker and his driver in University Town, another highly-guarded locality in Peshawar.

Taliban militants in September abducted the Afghan ambassador-designate Abdul Khaleq Farahi from the city situated close to the restive tribal region.

The region has become a haven of Al Qaeda and Taliban militants who mount cross border offensives against Afghan government interests and on the foreign troops fighting Taliban insurgency.