Correspondent Salman Masood's house was searched by Pakistan Rangers this morning
Islamabad:
A New York Times journalist in Islamabad alleged in a series of tweets today that his house was searched by Pakistan Rangers, fueling outrage on social media.
Salman Masood, a correspondent of The New York Times, live-tweeted the raid, saying he had been told by a senior police official that a "terrorist search operation" was under way in his house. When he refused to let them in without a warrant, they left but returned later with an officer.
Pakistan's interior ministry has ordered an investigation into the raid. "Such raids and activities are not acceptable," a government statement quoted Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar as saying.
The search comes at a time Pakistan claims to have raided and arrested a few persons in connection with the terror attack in Pathankot in India on January 2.
Mr Masood has posted photos of uniformed men searching his home. "They asked if I had any illegal weapons hidden in the house," he tweeted.
His tweets have drawn outrage.
In 2013, the Pakistan bureau chief of the New York Times, Declan Walsh, was expelled from the country for "undesirable activities". He has not returned since.
The press has often come under attack in Pakistan, where more than 70 journalists have been killed in the line of duty since 2001, according to the UN.