- Pakistan repels Taliban, allied aggression at border.
- Islamabad rejects Afghan minister’s remarks made in India.
- Pakistan calls for peace, regional stability via dialogue.
Pakistan has expressed hope that one day the Afghan people would be emancipated and governed by a true representative government, as it voiced deep concern over the unwarranted aggression by the Afghan Taliban and its allied terrorist outfits.
“We also hope that one day, the Afghan people would be emancipated and they would be governed by a true representative government,” the Foreign Office said in a strongly worded statement on Sunday, as it expressed deep concern over unwarranted aggression by the Afghan Taliban, Fitna al-Khawarij, and Fitna al-Hindustan along the Pak-Afghan border on the night of October 11-12, adding that such actions “belie the spirit of peaceful neighbourhood and cooperation.”
The statement said Pakistan, exercising its right to self-defence, had repelled the assaults and inflicted heavy losses on Taliban and affiliated terrorists in terms of men, material, and infrastructure used for planning attacks inside Pakistan. It added that all possible measures were taken to avoid collateral damage and protect civilians.
Pakistan reaffirmed its commitment to dialogue and diplomacy, saying it continued to closely monitor the situation and would take all necessary steps to safeguard its territory and citizens. It warned that “any further provocations will be met with a befitting and unwavering response.”
Islamabad also rejected the Afghan interim foreign minister’s remarks made in India, terming them an attempt to divert attention from the presence of terrorist groups in Afghanistan.
It said the Taliban regime cannot absolve itself of its responsibility for regional peace and stability, adding that the UN Monitoring Team reports have documented the activities of these groups.
The statement noted that Pakistan has repeatedly raised concerns over the presence of Fitna al-Khawarij and Fitna al-Hindustan operating from Afghan soil, urging the Taliban to take concrete and verifiable action against them.
Pakistan also highlighted that it had hosted around four million Afghans for over four decades, but would now regulate their presence according to international norms and laws.
Reiterating its stance, Islamabad said it desired a peaceful, regionally connected, and prosperous Afghanistan, while calling on the Taliban to act responsibly and fulfil its commitments towards eliminating terrorism.
In the border skirmishes, Pakistani forces killed more than 200 Afghan Taliban and affiliated terrorists in self-defence action responding to an unprovoked overnight attack by the Taliban forces and India-backed terrorists, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.
In a statement, the military’s media wing said that Pakistani forces carried out “precision fires and strikes, as well as physical raids, directed against Taliban camps and posts, terrorist training facilities and support networks operating from Afghan territory”.
