ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday shed light on the operation the security forces conducted in the Pakistan-Afghanistan border areas less than a week ago, saying that March 18 operation was not against Afghan people, institutions the government.
On March 18, Pakistan conducted an intelligence-based operation on the Pak-Afghan border whose target was terrorists associated with the Hafiz Gul Bahadur group said Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, the Foreign Office Spokesperson during weekly media briefing held here on Thursday.
“The attacks did not target the civilian population of Afghanistan,” she clarified, adding that the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan terrorists have been responsible for many killings in Pakistan.
Zahra Baloch further stressed that the March 18 operation was not against the Afghan people, institutions, or the government. “We respect the regional security and sovereignty of Afghanistan,” she stated, adding that the country was ready to work together for a joint solution to the problems.
The spokesperson also stressed that Pakistan will not tolerate terrorist acts on its soil, adding that a protest communiqué was also sent to Afghanistan over the terrorist attack.
“Pakistan has provided evidence of the presence of terrorists in Afghanistan many times. According to our latest information, the Afghan border is peaceful,” she added.
The Spokesperson further said that when information is shared by Afghanistan, only then can Pakistan comment on it. “Pakistan has always been sending messages to Afghanistan regarding joint counter-terrorism measures,” she emphasised.
On the global front, the FO spokesperson reiterated that Pakistan was deeply concerned about the massacre in Gaza, and strongly condemned the Israeli attacks on the Al-Shifa Hospital, where she says women and children, who had taken refuge, were subjected to atrocities.
“Israel’s attacks on Palestinian citizens are war crimes and attacks on Gaza against the orders of the International Court of Justice,” she stressed, adding that targeting innocent civilians falls under the category of war crimes.
The United Nations should press Israel for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the Foreign Office spokesman demanded.
Furthermore, Zahra Baloch condemned that India had banned 14 political parties in the held-Kashmir and muzzled freedom of expression.
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