Double murder-accused American diplomat in Lahore is a "former US Army officer"

Islamabad, Feb 6(ANI): The office identity card of Raymond Davis, the double murder-accused US diplomat, who has been detained in Pakistan, shows he is a former US Army officer and a defence contractor.

Davis, who shot two persons to death at Mazang Chowk in Lahore on January 27, had worked as a firing instructor for the US Army, Dunya News reports.

According to sources, Davis' name was not included in the list of diplomatic and non-diplomatic officers, which was sent to the Pakistan Foreign Ministry on January 25 for the issuance of ID cards.

However, his name was included by the US consulate in the revised list of January 28 after the Lahore incident, the sources added.

It is noteworthy that the US Embassy in Pakistan has repeatedly called for Davis' immediate release, saying that he has been "unlawfully detained by authorities in Lahore."

"When detained, the U.S. diplomat identified himself to police as a diplomat and repeatedly requested immunity under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. Local police and senior authorities failed to observe their legal obligation to verify his status with either the U.S. Consulate General in Lahore or the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad," said the US Embassy.

"Furthermore, the diplomat was formally arrested and remanded into custody, which is a violation of international norms and the Vienna Convention, to which Pakistan is a signatory," it added. (ANI)