TEHRAN: Gunmen in southeastern Iran near the Pakistan border killed nine foreign nationals Saturday, Iranian media reported, more than a week after the neighbors exchanged deadly cross-border fire.
“According to witnesses, this morning unknown armed men killed nine non-Iranians in a house in the Sirkan neighborhood of Saravan city” in Sistan-Baluchestan province, the Mehr news agency reported.
So far, no group or individuals had claimed responsibility, the agency added.
The deadly attack follows rare military action in the porous border region of Baluchestan — split between the two nations — that had stoked regional tensions already inflamed by the Israel-Hamas war.
Sistan-Baluchestan is one of the few mainly Sunni Muslim provinces in Shiite-dominated Iran.
It has seen persistent unrest involving cross-border drug-smuggling gangs and rebels from the Baluchi ethnic minority, as well as jihadists.
On January 18, Pakistan launched air strikes on “militant targets” in Iran, two days after Iran had launched strikes on its territory.
Tehran said it had targeted Jaish Al-Adl, a jihadist group which has carried out a spate of deadly attacks in Iran in recent months.
Formed in 2012, the group is blacklisted by Iran as a “terrorist” organization.
The Iranian strikes, which Pakistan said killed at least two children, drew a sharp rebuke from Islamabad, which recalled its ambassador from Tehran and blocked Iran’s envoy from returning to Islamabad.
Tehran also summoned Islamabad’s charge d’affaires over Pakistan’s strikes, which left at least nine people dead.
The two countries, however, announced last Monday that they had decided to de-escalate and resumed diplomatic missions with the two ambassadors returning to their posts.
Gunmen in Iran kill 9 foreigners near Pakistan border — report
https://arab.news/5sp86
Gunmen in Iran kill 9 foreigners near Pakistan border — report
- So far, no group or individuals has claimed responsibility, Iranian news agency reports
- The deadly attack follows rare military action in the porous border region of Baluchestan
Pakistan says it backs Gaza peace plan, hopes next phase leads to Palestinian state
- Foreign Office says it is not concerned about who joins or stays out of the Abraham Accords
- Pakistan reaffirms rejection of Israel’s recognition of Somaliland, warns of regional instability
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Foreign Office said on Thursday it supported the Gaza peace plan endorsed by the United Nations Security Council, expressing hope its next phase would stabilize the situation in the war-ravaged territory, scale up humanitarian assistance and lead to an independent Palestinian state.
The United States said on Wednesday it was moving into the next phase of a Gaza ceasefire plan. President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said in a post on X that the second phase will establish “a transitional technocratic Palestinian administration in Gaza” and mark the beginning of “the full demilitarization and reconstruction of Gaza, primarily the disarmament of all unauthorized personnel.”
Commenting on the development, Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said Pakistan had taken note of the announcement.
“We have seen this social media post about the next phase of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, and we express the hope that these steps will lead to further stabilization of the situation, and upscaling the humanitarian assistance and end of the sacrifices of the people,” he said while addressing his weekly news conference.
Andrabi said Pakistan had been engaged in the Gaza peace effort as part of a group of Arab and Islamic countries since the initiative was presented by the US president and supported both the plan and the UN Security Council resolution endorsing it.
“We also hope that these efforts will lead to a credible time bound, political process consistent with international legitimacy and relevant UN resolutions to establish an independent, sovereign, contiguous state of Palestine, based on pre-1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital,” he added.
Asked about Pakistan’s position on the Abraham Accords, a series of US-brokered agreements normalizing relations between Israel and several Arab states, Andrabi said Islamabad’s stance remained unchanged.
“Our position with respect to it is that there are certain benchmarks that have to be achieved ... And [these relate do] a viable, contiguous state of Palestine, with East Jerusalem as its capital.”
He said Pakistan did not judge other countries’ choices on the accords.
“We are not concerned about who does or who does not join the Abraham Accords,” he said.
SOMALILAND ISSUE
Earlier in his opening remarks, Andrabi reiterated Pakistan’s rejection of Israel’s recognition of Somaliland, a self-declared breakaway region of Somalia, calling the move illegal and warning it could destabilize the Horn of Africa and Red Sea region.
Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in 1991 but is not recognized by the United Nations or the African Union.
Israel’s recent steps to recognize the territory have drawn criticism from Somalia and several Muslim-majority countries.
Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar raised the issue during the 22nd Extraordinary Session of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation Council of Foreign Ministers held in Jeddah on Jan. 10.
“In his address, the DPM-FM strongly condemned the illegal and unlawful recognition by Israel of the Somaliland region, as well as subsequent unwarranted and highly provocative visits of Israeli officials to the territory,” the Foreign Office spokesman said.
“He termed such acts as political aggression and a direct assault on Somalia’s internationally recognized borders, setting a perilous precedent and threatening peace and security in the Horn of Africa, the Red Sea region, and beyond.”
Andrabi said Dar also addressed the Palestinian issue during the session, rejecting proposals for the displacement of Palestinians and reaffirming Pakistan’s long-standing support for a two-state solution.
