Pakistan has issued a demarche to Afghanistan in response to a recent terrorist attack on two military posts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Lower Chitral district.
Interim Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani confirmed during a media briefing after the conclusion of 2-day Special Investment Facilitation Council meeting.
He was flanked by other cabinet members including Interior, Law and other ministers who spoke about the deliberations held during the SIFC meeting.
“Pakistan registered a strong protest over the incident and summoned the Afghan charge d’affaires in Islamabad yesterday and handed over a protest note (demarche) to him,” said the foreign minister while responding to a media query.
The attack, which occurred on Wednesday, resulted in the tragic loss of four security personnel and the elimination of over 16 militants attempting to infiltrate Pakistan from Afghanistan. The assailants targeted two security checkpoints in the southern part of the district.
During a press conference in Islamabad, Foreign Minister Jilani addressed concerns about whether Pakistan had communicated this matter with the interim Afghan government.
He also emphasized that Pakistan viewed the Chitral incident as “very unfortunate” and took the recent surge in terrorism with utmost seriousness.
The foreign minister stressed on the responsibility of the Afghan government to prevent attacks originating from its territory.
He called on Afghanistan to suppress all such elements, including the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and others.
Pakistan remains engaged in continuous communication with Afghan authorities, and its demand from the Afghan government is to ensure that such incidents do not recur.
Caretaker Interior Minister Sarfraz Bugti echoed these sentiments, emphasizing that Pakistan and the international community expected the Afghan Taliban authorities to honor the Doha agreement and prevent the use of Afghan soil for activities against other nations.
Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch had previously urged the Afghan authorities to fulfill their obligations and deny terrorists the use of Afghan territory against Pakistan.
These developments come against the backdrop of rising concerns about cross-border terrorism originating from Afghanistan.
Pakistan’s military leadership and former Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have raised alarm about the presence of “safe havens” and the free movement of militants in Afghanistan. They have also called for Kabul to take action against these elements.
While the Taliban initially reassured Pakistan that they would not permit their territory to be used for attacks against other countries, a separate statement by a Taliban spokesperson took a tougher stance.
