ISLAMABAD, Sept 22: Pakistan's Foreign Office and the United Nations have advised the members of the expatriate’s community in the federal capital to stay away from markets and restaurants and to restrict their movements to the less populated posh sectors of the city.
Diplomatic sources said the advice was contained in the new security guidelines issued by the two organisations on Monday in the wake of the weekend terrorist attack on the Marriott Hotel.
Both the UN and the Foreign Office also advise the diplomats, other staff of foreign missions and their families against travelling outside Islamabad, the senior diplomat of a European Union member-state told Dawn.
They have been told to keep clear of places where police or other law enforcers are deployed, mosques, and other religious places as well.
Whole of Rawalpindi city has been made off-limits to the diplomatic community, as the garrison city has been declared a "security red zone" and travelling on the Islamabad Highway and Murree Road as "most insecure".
These guidelines arrived at foreign missions as the body of Czech ambassador Ivo Zderek, who died in the inferno at Marriott, was being flown to his homeland.
Two US Marines were also killed in Saturday's terror attack.
It has been suggested to the diplomatic community to avoid visiting the populated sectors and centres, such as the Karachi Company, Peshawar Mor, G-8, G-10, G-11 Markaz, Melody, Aabpara and all vegetable and weekly bazaars.
Restaurants of any kind, even those located in posh sectors, are potential "soft targets" for the terrorists and should never be visited by the diplomats and their families until further security updates are issued after careful assessment of the situation, according to the guidelines.
"We have also been advised to not visit any religious seminary or schools for official functions or otherwise and to only send our drivers and servants for groceries and other shopping," said the counsellor of another EU member country.
He said that soon after the blast at Marriott extra men of Frontier Constabulary were deployed at the embassies located outside the fortified Diplomatic Enclave.
Such missions would hurry up with plans to erect their own buildings inside the Diplomatic Enclave, he added.
The guidelines also ask expatriates to shun places where police or other law enforcement agencies are deployed or mosques and other religious centres are located.
Diplomats of 27-member EU countries will meet at the embassy of France on September 30 to discuss internal and external security of their missions and staff here.
The EU member countries include Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungry, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands (Holland), Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
PRIVATE GUARDS: The video of the Marriott's blast has revealed that guards of the private companies deployed at the gates of buildings and houses in the capital are not well trained in dealing with emergencies and bomb blasts.
Private security guards deployed at the gate of Marriott had almost five minutes to extinguish the fire that erupted in the front part of the explosives-laden truck but failed to do so. The fire triggered the devastating blast.
A diplomat told Dawn that various embassies have started questioning the effectiveness and capacity of the private guards and whether they were able to detect threats and deal with an emergency in a professional manner.
FOREIGN CITIZENS: All the embassies and high commissions in the capital have been asked by their foreign offices to provide them complete details of the new security arrangements being taken by the Pakistani government so that each country should issue security advice and warnings to their respective citizens living in Pakistan or intending to visit the country.
A diplomatic source said that after the Marriott's blast, many foreign staff members of the embassies and development agencies are going to send their families and children back home until the situation improves in Pakistan.
Dear visitor, the comments section is undergoing an overhaul and will return soon.