Islamabad said early Sunday that its military carried out strikes along the Afghanistan border targeting militant hideouts it holds responsible for recent attacks inside Pakistan which have killed several personnel including a military officer on Saturday.
The government did not specify exact locations, and there was no immediate comment from Kabul on the strikes. However, unconfirmed reports the strikes targeted places in Paktika, Nangarhar, and Khost.
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar confirmed to Views News Now correspondent the counterterrorism strikes.
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Tarar described the operations as “intelligence-based, selective” and said seven camps belonging to the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and allied groups were targeted. He added that an affiliate of the Islamic State group also struck.
Pakistan has carried out similar cross-border strikes before, including in October, when it targeted militant hideouts deep inside Afghanistan.
Tarar emphasized that Islamabad seeks peace in the region but stressed that the “safety and security of Pakistani citizens remains a top priority.”
The strikes come days after a suicide bombing in Bajaur district of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province killed 11 soldiers and a child.
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Authorities said the attacker was an Afghan national. Hours before the border strikes, another suicide bomber attacked a security convoy in nearby Bannu district, killing two soldiers, including a lieutenant colonel.
Following Saturday’s attacks, Pakistan’s military warned it would act against militants “irrespective of their location,” signaling rising tensions with Kabul.
Islamabad has accused Afghanistan-based militant leaders of orchestrating recent deadly attacks, including a suicide bombing at a Shiite mosque in Islamabad earlier this month that killed 31 worshippers.
According to Tarar, Pakistan has repeatedly conveyed it to the Afghan Taliban to prevent their territory from being misused to launch attacks, but the Afghan ruler have not taken any meaningful so far.
The Minister said the international community should pressure the Afghan authorities to uphold commitments under the Doha agreement.
Pakistan has experienced a sudden spike in large militant attacks in recent years, primarily blamed on the TTP and outlawed Baloch separatist groups.
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Last year, Pakistan and Afghanistan engaged in border clashes following terror attacks in Pakistan and Islamabad’s retributive strikes against the TTP targets in Afghanistan.
Despite mediation by friendly countries including Qatar, the two uneasy neighbors have not seen any improvement or coordination against militants that Pakistan says are based in Afghanistan and backed by India and facilitated by the Afghan Taliban ruler.
The United Nations in a recent report estimated that thousands of militants operate from Afghanistan and pose a threat to Pakistan and the regional peace.
Asim Tanveer is a seasoned journalist working for TV and electronic and print media outlets. He has been working for some of the world’s leading news organizations including Associated Press (AP), Reuters, BBC, CNN, CNBC, Star TV, Voice of America and The New York Times for more than 30 years. He has won several awards for his live coverage of events that include a Reuters News Agency World Award and the Pride of Performance award in 1997.
