KABUL (Pajhwok): As Taliban continue to make swift gains in northern Afghanistan, India has closed its consulate in Mazar-i-Sharif, the capital of Balkh province.
The Indian government, which sent a military plane to the northern city on Tuesday, urged its diplomats and citizens to take the special flight home.
India had shut all its consulates, leaving only the embassy in Kabul operational, Reuters quoted a government official as saying.
In August, India had temporarily pulled out staff from its consulate in the capital of southern Kandahar province, a Taliban stronghold.
The Print, an Indian media outlet, quoted a government source as confirming the consulate’s closure, saying the situation in Mazar-i-Sharif was not good.
“There will be no stopover in Kabul. The aircraft will take the diplomats directly to New Delhi,” one source told the digital news platform.
Indian consulates in Nangarhar, Herat, Kandahar and Balkh are now closed. All Indians have been advised to make immediate arrangements for returning home.
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