Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar said on Sunday that Pakistan had lodged a complaint with the German government following yesterday’s attack by a “gang of extremists” on the Pakistani consulate in Frankfurt. His message on X (formerly Twitter) said the German government was urged to fulfil its responsibilities under the Vienna Conventions and ensure the safety of Pakistan’s diplomatic missions and personnel.

According to DW, a group of more than 400 people took part in a protest outside the consulate on Saturday, flying flags of pre-Taliban Afghanistan. The protest was aimed at drawing attention to grievances filed against Pakistan’s intelligence and military agencies, which organizers say have killed political opponents and dissidents.

Pakistani officials also confirmed to Voice of America that the attack was “a serious security lapse on the part of the German side.” They said German authorities had not informed consulate staff about the upcoming protest or increased security at the diplomatic facility as per “standard operating procedures.”

The Pakistani embassy in Berlin reiterated Germany’s obligations under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations in condemning the “reprehensible act of vandalism” on X (formerly Twitter). The embassy said it was in contact with local authorities to ensure that the vandalism incident does not happen again and that the perpetrators are held accountable.

Article 27(1)(a) of the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations states: “The receiving State shall, even in case of armed conflict, respect and protect consular premises as well as the property of the consular post and the consular archives.”

The rights and protection of diplomatic missions are also set out in Article 22(2) of the 1961 Geneva Convention on Diplomatic Relations, which gives ambassadors the freedom to carry out their duties without interference or fear of reprisal from the host country.

The incident exacerbated already strained ties between Pakistan and Afghanistan, as Pakistan continues to host millions of Afghan refugees who have fled unrest in their home country. More than 3 million Afghan refugees are currently living in Pakistan, which had just launched a deportation campaign to remove those found without proper documentation. However, Islamabad earlier this month extended the stay of officially registered Afghan refugees by one year.