Key Points
- Pakistani forces targeted Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan hideouts near the Afghan border overnight
- Security sources said the sites were used to facilitate terrorist infiltration into Pakistan
- The strikes follow a series of deadly attacks on Pakistani security forces
- Islamabad has demanded verifiable action from Kabul against terrorist groups operating from Afghan soil
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan carried out strikes on Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) hideouts in areas adjoining the Pakistan-Afghanistan border during the night of September 20-21, targeting locations used by terrorists for infiltration into Pakistan.
Pakistani security sources said the strikes targeted known TTP hideouts in eastern Afghanistan. The operation followed a series of deadly terrorist attacks in Pakistan in recent days, including an attack on a police compound in Kohat that martyred security personnel and civilians.
The latest strikes were reported in Afghanistan’s Kunar and Paktika provinces.
Pakistani security officials said the targets were terrorist sanctuaries. Meanwhile, the public in the border areas strongly demands that Pakistan should target the head of the snake.
Until the Taliban Regime leadership is taken care of and eliminated, they will continue to shelter, finance and equip terrorists.
Pakistan will do a great service to humanity if it wipes out the leaders of this terrorist regime.
The TTP, a separate terrorist organisation from Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban but closely aligned with it ideologically, has carried out numerous attacks inside Pakistan.
Islamabad has repeatedly urged upon the Taliban government in Kabul to rein in TTP leaders and operators who are freely using the Afghan territory for refuge, plan, and prepare terrorist attacks against Pakistan.
Pakistan’s military leadership has said that relations with Kabul can improve if the Afghan authorities prevent terrorist groups from using Afghan territory for attacks against Pakistan.
Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said on September 20 that Islamabad had ruled out talks with the TTP and could act in self-defence if the Afghan authorities did not address its security concerns.
The latest strikes
The latest operation has also intensified calls inside Pakistan for action against the TTP leadership and the networks that facilitate its operations from Afghanistan.
The argument reflects Islamabad’s longstanding position that attacks inside Pakistan cannot be addressed only by targeting individual terrorists crossing the border.
Pakistan has previously said it has exercised restraint and repeatedly called on Kabul to take verifiable action against terrorist sanctuaries.
READ ALSO: Afghan TTP Terrorist Identified In Kurram Operation
President Asif Ali Zardari said earlier in the year that Pakistan was aware of the locations of those planning, facilitating and supporting violence and warned that those responsible for continued bloodshed inside Pakistan would not remain beyond reach.
The latest escalation comes at a sensitive time for Pakistan-Afghanistan relations, with China, Qatar and Turkey involved in diplomatic efforts to reduce tensions between Islamabad and Kabul.
A fresh cycle of cross-border strikes and terrorist attacks could further complicate those efforts.
Pakistan and Afghanistan have faced recurring tensions over cross-border terrorism, particularly since the Taliban returned to power in Kabul in August 2021.
Islamabad has maintained that Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other terrorist groups use Afghan territory to plan and launch attacks against Pakistan, with terrorists moving across the border through remote areas with difficult terrain.
Pakistan has repeatedly called on the Afghan authorities to prevent their territory from being used for attacks against neighbouring countries.
Kabul, though, rejected accusations, but Islamabad has provided numerous pieces of evidence of the Afghan Taliban’s linkages with the TTP terrorists, which showed it provides organised support for attacks in Pakistan.
The identification of Afghan nationals involved in the recent attacks inside Pakistan has necessitated the latest strikes on the TTP hideouts inside Afghanistan, maintained security sources.
Cross-border terrorist attacks have remained a central issue in Pakistan-Afghanistan relations.
