ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s foreign ministry spokesperson on Sunday urged India to refrain from stoking “terrorism” from Afghan soil, rejecting New Delhi’s criticism of its cross-border military operations in Afghanistan.
India’s External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Shri Randhir Jaiswal on Saturday criticized Pakistan’s airstrikes in Afghanistan, blaming Islamabad for the “death of civilians and destruction of civilian infrastructure.”
Pakistan has carried out airstrikes and military operations in Afghanistan. Islamabad claims it has killed more than 660 Afghan Taliban operatives in clashes since fighting between the two countries broke out late last month. Islamabad accuses New Delhi of supporting militant outfits in Afghanistan, blaming them for attacks in Pakistan that target law enforcers and civilians. Afghanistan and India both deny these allegations.
Responding to Jaiswal’s statement, Pakistan’s foreign office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said Islamabad was carrying out “legitimate, targeted and precise actions” against militant hideouts in Afghanistan.
“India is in no position to make such statements and must instead focus on refraining from stoking terrorism inside Pakistan from Afghan soil,” he said in a statement.
“India’s active support and sponsorship of terrorist groups operating from Afghan soil, including Fitna-al-Khawarij and Fitna-al-Hindustan, are well known,” Andrabi said in a statement.
Pakistan uses the terms “Fitna Al-Khawarij” and Fitna Al-Hindustan” to describe militant outfits such as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and ethnic Baloch militant groups. It accuses India of supporting both, charges that New Delhi have denied.
Andrabi accused India of not only playing the role of a “spoiler” in Afghanistan but also in the region.
“For its part, Pakistan remains determined to take all appropriate actions in self-defense and to protect its citizens in accordance with international law, including the UN Charter,” he concluded.
A senior security official said on Saturday night that Pakistan’s Armed Forces carried out a strike against a tunnel in Kandahar that housed technical equipment of the Afghan Taliban and TTP militants.
The development took place a day after Pakistan said its forces had intercepted drones launched from Afghanistan on Friday, adding that falling debris injured two children in the city of Quetta and two people elsewhere in the country.
Fierce fighting between the two neighbors broke out on Feb.26 after the Afghan Taliban attacked Pakistani military installations in response to earlier airstrikes by Islamabad.
Pakistan has ruled out talks with Afghanistan and has said it will continue to carry out military operations in Afghanistan until it stops supporting militant outfits.
