US 'concerned' as Pakistan activist says father detained

Washington has said it was "concerned" by reports that far of a Pakistani activist who fled country has himself been detained, latest incident to fuel fears of a clampdown on dissent.

Alice Wells, assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asia, tweeted her concern late Thursday over "reports of continued harassment of Gulalai Ismail's family, and her far's detention today".

She said US called on Pakistan to "uphold citizens' rights to peaceful assembly, expression, and due process".

Wells tweeted after Ismail -- a women's rights activist who fled to US and is seeking asylum -- said her far Mohamm Ismail h been taken away by unkwn men earlier Thursday outside a court in Peshawar, a western city near border with Afghanistan.

Rabia Mehmood, a Pakistan researcher for Amnesty International, tweeted that he was in custody of cyber crime wing of Federal Investigation ncy (FIA).

On Friday, Ismail tweeted a copy of what she said was initial investigation report showing that her far h been accused of "hate speech and false information against Government institutions of Pakistan" on social media.

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FIA officials h immediate comment.

A senior Pakistani security source who spoke to AFP over WhatsApp said: "We (have) thing to do with this."

Gulalai Ismail is an international award-winning activist who has championed rights of Pakistani girls in a deeply patriarchal country.

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