Pakistan detains 5 Americans near Iran border

Paramilitary soldiers stand guard outside the US Consulate in Karachi.

Pakistani security forces have arrested five US citizens in the province of Balochistan near the country’s border with Iran.

Pakistani police said on Thursday that the Americans were carrying out suspicious activities along the border. They were driving in a car with fake license plates, police added.

The five Americans were freed after the US consulate in Karachi intervened and demanded their release. The US consulate apparently told police that the Americans enjoyed diplomatic immunity.

A number of US citizens, most of them armed, have recently been arrested in several Pakistani cities. But they were freed following interventions by the US embassy.

Tags: Pakistan