The Afghan embassy in Turkey announced on Thursday that it has permanently closed its headquarters in Ankara, following a decision by the Turkish authorities.

The embassy had been operating with the same staff for three and a half years, despite the Taliban taking power in Afghanistan in August 2021.

In a post on the Xbox platform, the embassy announced that it was closing due to the ‘decision of the host country’.

‘After the events of 5 August 2021, after the failure of the Taliban’s attempts to take control of the embassy, and after the continuous pressure on the diplomats and staff of this embassy, as well as the pressure on the Turkish government, the Turkish Foreign Ministry has decided to terminate the mission of the ambassador and diplomats of this embassy to the Republic,’ the embassy added.

Neither the Turkish Foreign Ministry nor Afghan diplomats have commented on the decision.