Kabul Issues Firm Warning to Pakistan Following Airstrikes Resulting in 46 Fatalities
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Kabul, Dec 26 (NationPress) Acting Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi on Thursday issued a strong warning to Pakistan, urging Islamabad to heed the lessons of history before launching attacks on Afghanistan.
"Afghans will not forget the invasion of their territory, and Pakistani rulers should adopt a more measured policy," several reports quoted Muttaqi as saying during an event commemorating the 45th anniversary of the Soviet invasion.
During his address, the foreign minister cautioned Pakistan to "learn from the fate of the Soviet Union and the United States", emphasizing that Afghanistan will never accept invasions. He also reportedly called upon the people of Pakistan to halt their rulers' misguided policies.
Muttaqi's emphatic response followed closely after Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan soil that claimed the lives of 46 individuals, including numerous women and children, on Tuesday night.
The airstrikes carried out by Pakistani fighter jets in the Barmal district of Paktika province marked the second instance this year where Islamabad directly targeted civilian areas within Afghanistan. A similar attack in March resulted in the deaths of eight people, three of whom were children.
This aggressive action from Islamabad has sparked widespread condemnation from the Afghan populace and the Taliban government, with analysts in Pakistan acknowledging the inherent risks of such decisions.
Enayatullah Khwarazmi, the spokesperson for the Afghan Ministry of Defence, stated on Wednesday that Pakistan must recognize that such arbitrary actions do not resolve any issues.
"The Islamic Emirate regards this brutal act as a violation of all international principles and an outright act of aggression, and we condemn it vehemently. The Pakistani authorities must understand that such arbitrary actions do not lead to any solutions," the spokesperson was quoted as saying by Afghan news outlet Tolo news.
Hamid Karzai, the former President of Afghanistan, condemned the Pakistani military airstrikes in the strongest terms, labeling it a blatant act of aggression and a violation of Afghan sovereignty.
Karzai indicated that the strained relations between the two nations were a result of Pakistan's harmful policies aimed at fostering extremism in the region and attempting to undermine Afghanistan.
He cautioned that civilized relations grounded in good neighborliness would benefit both countries.
Hafiz Zia Ahmad, Pakistan’s Chargé d’Affaires in Kabul, was summoned to the Afghan foreign ministry and issued a strong demarche.
As of now, there has been no official response from the Pakistani government or military concerning the airstrikes, although local media suggest that the action was a reaction to a recent increase in TTP-sponsored terrorist assaults, including a recent incident in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa that led to the deaths of 16 Pakistani soldiers.
"Perhaps this seemingly contradictory approach has been adopted to convey to Kabul that while Islamabad is open to dialogue, it is also prepared to act against anti-Pakistan terrorists within Afghanistan if the Taliban fail to respond," stated an editorial in the Pakistani daily 'Dawn' on Thursday.
