KABUL (Pajhwok): The return of Afghans through the Torkham crossing has been temporarily halted following the abduction of a local trader in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Landi Kotal area and the closure of the Peshawar-Torkham highway for a second consecutive day.
Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper reported that protesters blocked the Peshawar-Torkham highway for the second consecutive day on Saturday, vowing to continue their protest until the abducted trader was found.
According to the report, unidentified individuals abducted Lal Zarif, popularly known as Haji Landi, a local trader, on Friday morning as he was leaving his home in Landi Kotal.
Police said a case had been registered against unidentified individuals following the incident, but no information was available about the trader’s whereabouts or the motive for his abduction at the time of publication.
Following the abduction, local residents blocked the Peshawar-Torkham highway in the Charwazgai area on Friday afternoon, demanding the immediate recovery of the trader.
Dozens of political party members, civil society activists and the trader’s relatives also gathered at the protest site and expressed concern over his disappearance.
The protesters said the abduction of a trader in broad daylight raised serious questions about the performance of security agencies. They accused police of failing to obtain any clue about his whereabouts.
The protesters vowed not to reopen the highway until the abducted trader was found.
The closure has disrupted traffic and temporarily halted the return of Afghans through the Torkham crossing.
sa
