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Karzai and Abdullah condemn Pakistani airstrikes, join calls for dialogue
Karzai described the reported attacks as a violation of Afghanistan’s national sovereignty and contrary to international law and accepted international norms.
Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai and former Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah have strongly condemned the reported Pakistani airstrikes in eastern Afghanistan, joining growing calls for dialogue amid rising tensions between the two neighbouring countries.
Their statements came after Pakistan carried out overnight airstrikes on residential areas in the eastern provinces of Paktia, Paktika and Kunar.
Afghan officials say at least 36 civilians, including women and children, were killed and 163 others wounded.
According to Afghan authorities, the deadliest strike occurred in Mandokhail village in Paktia’s Chamkani district, where an initial airstrike reportedly hit a civilian home before a second strike allegedly targeted villagers who had gathered to rescue the wounded.
Additional strikes were reported in Paktika’s Giyan district and Kunar’s Manogai district.
Karzai described the reported attacks as a violation of Afghanistan’s national sovereignty and contrary to international law and accepted international norms.
He extended his condolences to the families of those killed, wished a speedy recovery to the injured, and urged Pakistan to abandon what he described as confrontational policies and double standards toward extremism.
Karzai said it was in Pakistan’s own interest to pursue relations with Afghanistan based on good neighbourliness, mutual respect and constructive engagement.
Abdullah Abdullah also condemned the strikes, saying they had caused heavy civilian casualties and describing them as a hostile act that would only deepen tensions between the two countries.
He argued that military force has repeatedly failed to resolve disputes and called on both sides to embrace dialogue, diplomacy and the principles of good neighbourly relations to address their differences peacefully.
The condemnation follows similar criticism from former US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad, who said Pakistan had once again resorted to military action despite repeated calls from the international community and many Pakistanis to resolve disputes through dialogue.
Khalilzad said he has consistently condemned the killing of Afghan civilians and questioned whether Islamabad is genuinely seeking a negotiated solution. He also argued that Pakistan had failed to respond to several proposals put forward by the Islamic Emirate to address bilateral security concerns.
The former US envoy further questioned whether Pakistan’s security establishment may be pursuing broader strategic objectives, including keeping Afghanistan unstable, warning that continued conflict could strengthen extremist groups such as ISIS-K and increase China’s influence in Afghanistan.
Relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan have remained tense in recent years, with both governments accusing each other of failing to address cross-frontier militant activity.
Pakistan has previously said its military operations target armed groups responsible for attacks inside its territory, while Afghan authorities have repeatedly condemned cross-frontier strikes as violations of Afghanistan’s sovereignty and say civilians continue to bear the brunt of the violence.
Amir Khan Muttaqi, the Islamic Emirate’s Foreign Minister, met with Gholamreza Nouri Ghezeljeh, Iran’s Minister of Agriculture Jihad, in Kabul on Thursday.
Afghanistan’s Foreign Ministry said the two sides held comprehensive discussions on bilateral relations, expanding economic and transit cooperation, and holding the seventh meeting of the Joint Economic Commission between the two countries.
Muttaqi welcomed the progress in practical economic and transit cooperation between Afghanistan and Iran, saying there are further opportunities to expand bilateral ties.
Iran’s agriculture minister also stressed the importance of making use of existing opportunities for cooperation in various sectors and called for expanding current areas of cooperation.
Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) has unveiled a new visa card and HesabPay mobile application as part of efforts to expand digital financial services in Afghanistan.
The new products were introduced at an event in Kabul on Thursday, where Ahmad Shahpoor Mia Khail, the bank’s deputy governor for supervision, urged Afghans to use digital cards for payments and cash withdrawals.
Mia Khail said improving public trust and providing better financial services remain among the bank’s priorities, describing the digitization of the financial system as a key step toward electronic transactions.
“Our sole objective is to enable every Afghan to make payments using a card, mobile phone or other means,” he said.
Officials from several companies said around one million active customers in Afghanistan currently use HesabPay services, adding that they are committed to expanding access to financial services.
Ahmad Khalid Wadan, the owner of one of the companies, said the initiative aims to help build “a strong, secure and reliable digital financial system” in Afghanistan.
Da Afghanistan Bank has repeatedly called for the digitization of monetary and commercial transactions, saying it can improve transparency and efficiency and help expand economic activity.
Human Rights Watch in a statement on Wednesday called for the release of two UN staffers and six NGO workers in Afghanistan.
HRW said that six male staff working with the Women and Children Legal Research Foundation (WCLRF) had been “forcibly disappeared” from the NGO’s Kabul office last month. The NGO has been involved in aid programmes and advocacy on women’s and children’s rights, HRW said.
In a separate incident, Human Rights Watch also called for the release of two Afghan staff members of the UN’s Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), who were detained by IEA officials in the western city of Herat on Sunday.
The IEA’s spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, told Reuters that he was “trying to gather details” about the recent detentions, but had “not received final clarity.”
The UN confirmed the detention of two of its staffers earlier this week. “UNAMA has not been informed of the charges against them and has not been permitted to visit them,” Farhan Haq, deputy spokesman for the UN Secretary-General, said in a briefing on Wednesday.
Fereshta Abbasi, Afghanistan Researcher at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement that the detentions of UNAMA staff threatened the UN’s “ability to deliver lifesaving aid.”
As the UN’s political mission in Afghanistan, UNAMA is involved in human rights monitoring and data gathering. Its reports have frequently been criticised by the IEA government in the past.
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