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19-03-2024
By SJA Jafri
KABUL/ ISLAMABAD: Eight people, including five women and three children, have been killed in two airstrikes carried out by Pakistan Army in the border region of Afghanistan, a Taliban government spokesman said.
Retaliating the attack, Afghanistan security forces have launched heavy weapons at the Pakistani military.
Pakistan claims the attacks were launched from Afghan soil, but it has been denied by Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban.
For the unversed, the border tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan, the two neighboring countries, have increased since the Taliban government seized power in 2021, with Islamabad accusing terrorist groups of carrying out regular attacks on them.
In a post on X, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, said, that around 3:00 last night (local time), Pakistani planes bombed houses of civilians in the Barmal district of Paktika province and Afghan Dubai area of Sepera district of Khost province, killing three women and three children. Also, a house was destroyed killing two women.
Condemning the attacks, Mujahid, said: “The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan strongly condemns these attacks and calls this reckless action a violation of Afghanistan’s sovereignty.”
“The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan… does not allow anyone to compromise security by using Afghan territory,” Mujahid said.
The people of Pakistan and the new government should stop some army generals from the continuation of their wrong policies for the benefit of others like the last 20 years and spoiling the relationship between the two neighboring Muslim nations, Mujahid added.
The air strikes in Afghanistan came after seven Pakistani troops were killed on Saturday in a suicide bombing and coordinated attacks in a northwestern region, for which President Asif Ali Zardari had vowed retaliation.
In Saturday’s attack in the country’s restive North Waziristan region, two officers were among the seven Pakistan army personnel killed. All the six terrorists who attacked the check post in Mir Ali area were shot dead.
Hafiz Gul Bahadur group of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) took responsibility for the suicide bombing at the military post. It is considered to be one of the strongest terrorist groups in North Waziristan.
There have been no comments from Pakistan’s army and foreign office, so far, on the strikes in Afghanistan.
Pakistan shouldn’t blame Afghanistan for the lack of control, incompetence, and problems in its own territory,” Mujahid said.
“Such incidents can have very bad consequences which will not be in Pakistan’s control,” Mujahid added.
Areas along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border have long been a stronghold for terrorist groups including Pakistan’s home-grown Taliban group Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) which operates across the porous frontier with Afghanistan.
The Taliban takeover in Afghanistan emboldened the TTP, whose top leaders and fighters are hiding in Afghanistan.
