London: Britain is withdrawing the children of its diplomats from Pakistan following last month's suicide bomb attack that killed 55 people at the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad, the Foreign Office said on Wednesday.
"Following a review of security in the wake of the attack on the Marriott Hotel, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has decided that children of UK-based staff at the British High Commission in Islamabad should return to the UK," a Foreign Office spokesman said.
Other dependents, such as spouses, may return to Britain if they wish, he said.
The spokesman said the measure would affect more than 60 children of Britain-based staff, all under the age of eight.
The Marriott bombing underscored concern that al Qaeda-linked militants and Taliban fighters could de-stabilise Pakistan, a nuclear-armed nation of 170 million people.
The decision to withdraw the children was not made in reaction to any specific threat, the spokesman said, adding that a number of other diplomatic missions in Islamabad had recently taken similar steps.
"The core work of the High Commission (embassy) will not be affected. The UK is committed to maintaining its strong relationship with Pakistan, especially at this difficult time. The attack on the Marriott Hotel reinforces our shared determination to tackle violent extremism," he said.
The Islamabad High Commission is one of Britain's largest overseas missions with more than 100 Britain-based staff.
In its latest travel advice for Pakistan, updated after the Marriott attack, the Foreign Office says it believes there is a heightened threat to Westerners in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Karachi, Lahore and Peshawar and advises against all non-essential travel to these cities.
It also advised against using major international hotels in Pakistan that are frequented by Westerners.
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