ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Monday issued a demarche to Afghanistan’s Chargé d’Affaires Sardar Ahmad Shakeeb after a deadly suicide attack on a police checkpost in the country’s northwest, warning of a “decisive” response against those responsible.
Fifteen policemen were killed on Saturday night when militants rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into a police checkpost in Bannu district of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa before launching an assault.
A newly formed splinter group of the Pakistani Taliban, Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan, claimed responsibility for the attack. Islamabad has accused the group of being a front for the Pakistani Taliban.
“The ministry conveyed that a detailed investigation into the incident, along with evidence collected and technical intelligence, indicates that the attack was masterminded by terrorists residing in Afghanistan,” the Pakistani foreign office said, after summoning Shakeeb.
“It was impressed upon the Afghan side that Pakistan reserves the right to respond decisively against the perpetrators of this barbaric act.”
Kabul did not immediately respond to the statement.
The Pakistani foreign office said it had also highlighted the continued presence of various militant groups on Afghan soil, documented in reports by the United Nations monitoring team and other international organizations.
“The fight against terrorism is a common cause, and the Afghan Taliban must honor their commitment not to allow their territory to be used for terrorism against other countries,” it added.
Islamabad accuses Afghanistan of providing safe havens to militants who carry out attacks inside Pakistan, especially the Pakistani Taliban. The group is separate but closely allied with the Afghan Taliban. Kabul denies this.
Both countries have been locked in a conflict since Feb., when Afghanistan launched cross-border artillery strikes into Pakistan in retaliation for earlier Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan border areas that Islamabad said targeted alleged militant camps.
The latest round of fighting upended a Qatari-mediated ceasefire in October that halted earlier clashes between the two sides, which had killed dozens of civilians, security forces and militants. The two sides differ widely on the casualty figures.
In April, Afghan and Pakistani officials held Chinese-mediated talks in Urumqi, where Beijing said both sides agreed not to escalate tensions and to “explore a comprehensive solution.” However, cross-border clashes have continued but at a lower intensity.
