Pakistan carries out operation against terrorist sanctuaries of TTP in the border regions inside Afghanistan: FO Spokesperson
Mumtaz Zahra Baloch says terrorist groups like TTP are a collective threat to regional peace & security
Says Pakistan accords prime importance to the sovereignty & territorial integrity of Afghanistan
IEA Spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid says provinces bordering Pakistan hit by airstrikes; claims 8 citizens killed
ISLAMABAD ( Web News )
Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch has said that on Monday morning Pakistan carried out intelligence-based anti-terrorist operations in the border regions inside Afghanistan.
In a statement issued on Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said that the target of Monday’s operation was the terrorists belonging to Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group, which along with Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), is responsible for multiple terrorist attacks inside Pakistan, resulting in deaths of hundreds of civilians and law enforcement officials. The latest attack took place on 16 March 2024 at a security post in Mir Ali in North Waziristan and claimed the lives of seven Pakistani soldiers.
FO spokesperson said that over the past two years, Pakistan has repeatedly conveyed its serious concerns to the Interim Afghan Government over the presence of terror outfits including TTP inside Afghanistan. These terrorists pose a grave threat to Pakistan’s security and have consistently used Afghan territory to launch terror attacks inside Pakistani territory.
She said that Pakistan accords prime importance to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Afghanistan. It has, therefore, always prioritized dialogue and cooperation to confront the terrorist threat. We have repeatedly urged the Afghan authorities to take concrete and effective action to ensure that the Afghan soil is not used as a staging ground for terrorism against Pakistan. We have also called on them to deny safe havens to TTP and to hand over its leadership to Pakistan.
Pakistan has great respect for the people of Afghanistan. However, certain elements among those in power in Afghanistan are actively patronising TTP and using them as a proxy against Pakistan. Such an approach against a brotherly country, which stood with the people of Afghanistan through thick and thin, manifests shortsightedness. It ignores the support extended by Pakistan to the people of Afghanistan over the last several decades. We urge these elements in power to rethink the policy of siding with Khwarij terrorists shedding the blood of innocent Pakistanis and to make a clear choice to stand with the people of Pakistan.
Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said that terrorist groups like TTP are a collective threat to regional peace and security. We fully realize the challenge Afghan authorities face in combating the threat posed by TTP. She said that Pakistan would therefore continue to work towards finding joint solutions in countering terrorism and to prevent any terrorist organization from sabotaging bilateral relations with Afghanistan.
IEA Spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid says provinces bordering Pakistan hit by airstrikes; claims 8 citizens killed
Says such incidents can have very bad consequences which will be out of Pakistan’s control
Afghan Taliban claimed on Monday that Pakistan carried out two air strikes in Afghan territory, killing five women and three children, with a spokesman condemning the strikes as a violation of sovereignty.
“The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan does not allow anyone to compromise security by using Afghan territory,” Zabiullah Mujahid, the Spokesman of the Taliban administration, said in a statement.
The strikes killed five women and three children in the eastern border provinces of Khost and Paktika, he added.
“Last night at around 3 am, Pakistani planes bombed the houses of civilians,” said the IEA spokesperson. He added that the bombings resulted in the deaths of six civilians, including three women and three children in Paktika, with an additional two women losing their lives due to the collapse of a house in Khost province.
The Paktika province is located near Pakistan’s South Waziristan district while Khost is situated near North Waziristan.
“The person named Abdullah Shah, who the Pakistani side claims was targeted in the incident, is in Pakistan, on the other hand, there is a tribe living on both sides of this region who have daily trips and close relationships,” claimed Mujahid.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan strongly condemns these attacks and calls this reckless action a violation of Afghanistan’s territory, said the Taliban spokesperson and warned that the interim government of Afghanistan, which has a “long experience of freedom struggle against the superpowers of the world”, does not allow anyone to “invade its territory”.
The spokesperson also urged the new government to stop the “continuation” of wrong policies which “benefit others” and spoil the relationship between the two nations.
Zabiullah Mujahid warned of potentially dire consequences stemming from such incidents, cautioning that the repercussions could spiral beyond Pakistan’s control, “Such incidents can have very bad consequences which will be out of Pakistan’s control,” said the spokesperson.
The Taliban spokesperson further stressed that the IEA “will not tolerate” any actions that jeopardize the safety of individuals within its borders.
The spokesperson further said: “Pakistan should not blame Afghanistan for their problems and failure to control violent incidents. Such acts can lead to dire consequences which will not be in control of Pakistan.”