ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s ambassador to the United Nations Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said this week that over 4,700 Pakistanis have been killed in “terrorism” that originated from Afghanistan over the past three years, alleging that militant outfits operate from sanctuaries in the neighboring country with impunity.

The comments come in the backdrop of prevalent tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The former accuses the latter of supporting militant groups such as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), who have carried out some of the deadliest attacks against Pakistani law enforcers and citizens since 2007.

Afghanistan denies the allegations and urges Pakistan to resolve its security challenges without blaming it. As attacks in Pakistani provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan bordering Afghanistan rise, the two countries engaged in armed clashes this year that halted trade and the movement of people between them.

“More than 4,700 innocent Pakistanis have lost their lives to terrorism emanating from Afghanistan over the last three years,” Ahmad told the UN Security Council during a meeting to discuss threats to international peace and security on the occasion of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks anniversary.

“We have faced some of the most callous terrorist attacks carried out by savage entities like TTP, the BLA, and its Majeed Brigade, which continue to operate with impunity from sanctuaries in Afghanistan, with significant external support,” the Pakistani envoy added.

Ahmad said entities such as the BLA operate freely in the absence of “restrictive measures and sanctions” imposed by the Security Council that he noted could have contained their activities.

“And other groups, including ETIM and ISIL, also need to be effectively countered,” he said, referring to the East Turkistan Islamic Movement and a regional Daesh affiliate.

Pakistan routinely blames Afghan authorities for allowing militants to cross the border and attack Pakistani law enforcers. Pakistani security forces killed four militants affiliated with the TTP in the northwestern Kurram district on Friday, state media reported, among them an Afghan national named Ubaidullah Saad.

State media APP reported that Saad was a resident of Afghanistan’s Shah Qila village in Logar province.

“It is pertinent to note that Ubaidullah Saad was involved in multiple terrorist activities in Pakistan,” APP said.