US condemns attack on Indian Consulate in San Francisco; pledges to defend safety, security
Mar 20, 2023
Washington [US], March 21 : The United States has condemned the attack on the Indian Consulate in San Francisco and any attack against diplomatic facilities within the US. The country has pledged to defend the safety, and security of these facilities as well as the diplomats who work within them.
"The United States condemns the attack against the Indian Consulate and any attack against diplomatic facilities within the United States. We pledge to defend the safety and security of these facilities as well as the diplomats who work within them," US State Department spokesperson told ANI.
Khalistan supporters have started creating chaos across the world. After vandalism in London, Khalistan supporters allegedly attacked Indian Consulate in San Francisco (SFO). Videos of supporters breaking the doors and barging into the office surfaced on social media.
The visuals of the San Francisco consulate vandalism have been doing the rounds on social media, however, it is yet to be confirmed by Indian officials.
As per visuals, it can be confirmed that this happened outside the consulate, but the date cannot be confirmed.
Visuals shared online show a huge mob brandishing Khalistan flags mounted on wooden poles, using them to smash glass doors and windows of the consulate building. They raised pro-Khalistan slogans as they broke through makeshift security barriers raised by the city police and installed two Khalistani flags inside the premises.
Foundation for India and Indian Diaspora Studies (FIIDS), an Indian advocacy and awareness group on Sunday (local time) said that it "strongly suspect Pakistan's spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) is behind," attacks on Indian missions in UK and US.
"We strongly suspect Pakistan's ISI is behind instigating and funding Sikh radicalization with false propaganda. We ask Indian Americans including the Sikh majority to rise against the extremism," read the FIIDS statement.
"We are also appalled by the complete law and order failure in both in London as well as in SFO where a few radicalized separatists attacked India's diplomatic missions," added the statement.
"It is extremely concerning to see that the United Kingdom and the United States of America are failing to fulfil the commitments as per the Vienna convention to protect diplomatic missions. We would urge law and order institutions like the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the FBI as well as the CIA to ensure that terrorism finds no place and support in the United States of America," added the statement.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the release of the 2022 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, said: "The Report makes clear that in countries across every region, we continued to see a backsliding in human rights conditions, the closing of civic space, disrespect for fundamental human dignity."
