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Pakistan’s COAS says Afghans’ hand in terror incidents harmful to regional peace
Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir on Monday said the “involvement of Afghan nationals” in terrorism incidents in Pakistan was “detrimental to regional peace [and] stability”, Dawn news reported.
The army chief’s remarks came days after the Foreign Office confirmed the involvement of Afghan terrorists in last month’s Zhob cantonment attack.
A statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) on Monday said that Munir addressed the incident during a visit to the Martyrs’ Memorial at Bala Hisar Fort in Peshawar, where he met tribal elders among others.
“The involvement of Afghan nationals in terrorist incidents in Pakistan is detrimental to regional peace, stability and deviation from the Doha Peace Agreement by the interim Afghan government,” he is quoted as saying.
The agreement was signed in Qatar between the US and Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) in February 2020 to bring an end to the 2001–2021 war in Afghanistan.
Expressing concerns over the “sanctuaries available to banned outfits and [the] liberty of action they enjoy on Afghan soil”, Munir said: “Pakistan will spare no effort to dismantle terrorist networks and protect its citizens at all costs.”
The ISPR statement further quoted the COAS as saying: “With the unflinching resolve of the nation, Pakistan is successfully countering terrorism to enable a stable and peaceful environment for socioeconomic development in the area”.
It added that tribal elders assured the armed forces that the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and its ideology will “never be acceptable to any tribe and they will continue to stand with the state during the thick and thin.”
Pakistan has repeatedly raised concerns over the use of Afghan soil by militants for cross-border terrorism.
However, the Islamic Emirate has repeatedly rejected these claims. Last week,the IEA’s spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said that Pakistani officials are making baseless accusations against Afghanistan regarding the country’s security situation.
He said: “The Islamic Emirate does not allow anyone to use the territory of Afghanistan against any other country.”
“If there is any concern related to this, it should be shared with the Islamic Emirate face to face, instead of making useless claims in the media and confusing the public mind,” Mujahid said adding: “Because making such claims is not in the interest of both countries and nations.”
The country has seen an uptick in terror activities, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, after the TTP called off its ceasefire with the government in November last year.
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IEA leaders contact Maulana Fazlur Rehman to express condolences over Sheikh Idris’s death
According to a statement issued by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Pakistan (JUI-F), senior leaders of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) contacted JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman to express condolences following the killing of prominent religious scholar Sheikh Muhammad Idris in Charsadda.
The statement said that the callers included Defense Minister Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid, Interior Minister Khalifa Sirajuddin Haqqani, Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, and spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid.
According to JUI-F media cell, the Afghan leadership expressed sorrow over Sheikh Idris’s death and prayed for his elevated status. They also strongly condemned his killing and said they share the grief of the bereaved family and religious community.
The statement further added that the Islamic Emirate expressed solidarity with JUI-F, religious scholars, and students, and said that the people of Afghanistan share the grief of the Pakistani people over the incident.
Sheikh Idris, a senior member of JUI-F was shot dead by armed motorcyclists in the Utmanzai area of Charsadda on May 5, while he was traveling to a madressah. Daesh claimed responsibility for the attack.
Hundreds of former U.S. officials are calling on Washington to cancel a reported plan to relocate Afghan refugees from Qatar to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
In an open letter addressed to the U.S. State Department, more than 600 former civilian and military officials, along with around 100 organizations, urged the administration to stop the proposed transfer. The letter was sent to Marco Rubio.
The signatories argue that the Afghan nationals in question were brought to Qatar by the United States to complete legal immigration procedures after undergoing extensive security vetting. The letter states that while the individuals were cleared for resettlement in the United States, they are now being considered for relocation to Congo, a country for which they were never screened.
“Those individuals were vetted and approved for the United States, not for the Democratic Republic of the Congo,” the letter reads.
According to the report, more than 1,100 Afghan allies and their family members are currently being held at Camp As Sayliyah in Qatar under U.S. supervision. Around 800 of them have already completed all security checks and received authorization to travel to the United States. More than half are women and children, and many have remained in transit limbo for over 15 months.
The situation has drawn criticism from former officials and policy observers, who describe the proposed relocation as a betrayal of Afghan allies who supported U.S. missions and risked their lives during the war in Afghanistan. Critics also warn that the move could damage U.S. credibility with future partners.
Several members of the U.S. Congress had previously expressed opposition to the proposal, cautioning that it could significantly undermine trust in the United States among its allies.
Asif Durrani, Pakistan’s former special envoy for Afghanistan, has said that no country should interfere in Afghanistan’s internal affairs, stressing that it is up to Afghans themselves to bring about any change in their country.
In a post on X, Durrani said Afghans should be “left to their own devices” and that they would eventually “find the way out” of their challenges.
However, he warned that instability inside Afghanistan could have negative consequences for neighbouring countries, adding that Afghan leaders and their supporters should take responsibility to address such risks.
Durrani described his remarks as a simple expression of goodwill and best wishes for the Afghan people and their future.
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