(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) NEW DELHI, Dec 30 (KUNA) -- The Indian External Affairs Ministry on Saturday summoned Palestine Ambassador Adnan Abu Al-Haija over Palestine envoy to Pakistan sharing dais with alleged terrorist Hafiz Saeed.
"The government of India has strongly conveyed to the Palestinian side that the Palestinian Ambassador in Pakistan's association with terrorist Hafiz Saeed, who is proscribed by the UN, at an event in Rawalpindi on Friday is unacceptable," the ministry said in a statement. "The concerns were conveyed both in New Delhi to the Palestinian Ambassador and in Ramallah to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, State of Palestine," it noted. The Palestinian side expressed "deep regrets over the incident and assured that they are taking serious cognizance of their ambassador's presence at this event and they will deal with this matter appropriately," according to the statement.
"It was also conveyed that Palestine highly values its relationship with India and stands with us in the war against terrorism, and will not engage with those who commit acts of terror against India," the statement added. During his meeting today with Secretary of the Indian External Affairs Ministry Vijay Gokhale, Abu Al-Haija affirmed that the Palestinian government is to recall its Pakistan Ambassador Walid Abu Ali for taking part in the programme convened by Hafiz Saeed. Abu Al-Haija told the media, later on, that the incident was not acceptable as the relations between India and Palestine are very close.
New Delhi maintains that Saeed, the co-founder of Lashkar-e-Taiba and the chief of Jama'at-ud-Da'wah, is the mastermind of the Mumbai terror attacks which left 166 deaths in 2008. (end) atk.gb
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