ISLAMABAD, July 5 (Xinhuanet) -- The British High Commission in Islamabad has been temporarily closed, a Pakistan Foreign Office spokesman said.

    Masood Khan made the announcement at a weekly news briefing here on Monday, without giving any reasons for the closure.

    But diplomatic sources say the British High Commission has been closed due to security reasons.

    The closure coincides with the postponement of a reception marking the American Independence Day after a terrorist threat was received, according to a US embassy spokesman.

    The US embassy in Islamabad is located at the heavily-guarded diplomatic enclave, which has been closed to general public for almost two years.

    The US diplomatic missions have been targeted in the past, particularly in the southern port city of Karachi.

    A suicide car bombing outside the US Consulate in Karachi in June 2002 killed 14 Pakistanis.

    Police defused a huge bomb inside a van parked outside the consulate in March 2004.

    In May, two car bombs exploded close to the US Consul General's residence in Karachi, killing one person. Enditem