Tag: Afghanistan

  • Banned TTP is Pakistan’s absolute redline, Bilawal warns Afghan Taliban

    Banned TTP is Pakistan’s absolute redline, Bilawal warns Afghan Taliban

    Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said on Thursday that the Afghan Taliban have been told that the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is Pakistan’s redline.

    “We will not ignore it if we find out that the Taliban are not stopping TTP,” warned Bilawal Bhutto while talking at the Atlantic Council in Washington DC on Tuesday evening.

    “As far as the TTP is concerned, it’s absolutely our red line. It is something that we will not tolerate,” reiterated the foreign minister.

    Emphasizing that Pakistan will be willing to consider each and every option to ensure the safety and security of it’s people, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari expressed concern over a recent spate of attacks by the TTP. The Foreign Minister said that if the Taliban carry out operations against the extremists, Pakistan will provide help if needed.

    He said that there was no new agreement on cooperation with the United States for anti-terrorism.

    “We urge that frozen funds be released for the Afghan people not for the Taliban. They [Taliban] promised US and the world to take action against extremist groups,” said Bilawal.

    He acknowledged that there’s room for improvement in Pakistan’s Afghan policy — as there is in America’s — and stated, “We need to be serious about what we can do going forward”.

    “Are we going learn from our mistakes to ensure that we do not repeat them,” he asked. “The answer to that question is going to define the safety and stability of Afghanistan, the safety and stability of Pakistan and the safety and stability of our region.”

  • Bannu hostage situation: Forces kill the terrorists

    Security forces in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) have managed to free the hostages being held by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) inside the Counter-Terrorism Department’s (CTD) compound in Bannu.

    Defence Minister Khawaja Asif confirmed that “all the terrorists” have been killed.

    During the operation, an exchange of fire left several security men injured.

    The defence minister said that a unit of the army’s Special Service Group (SSG) carried out the operation, in which 10-15 of its commandos were injured while two were martyred.

    Earlier in the day, an operation had been launched to free the hostages held by the militants.

    Hospitals in the vicinity have been put on high alert and mobile services have also been blocked in the area.

    What happened in Bannu?

    On Sunday, militants detained at a facility run by KP police’s CTD in on Sunday took over the department, held interrogators hostage and demanded safe evacuation to Afghanistan.

    After taking over, the militants shot at security personnel inside the facility, injuring a policeman and a soldier. The outlawed TTP claimed responsibility for the incident.

    According to news reports, the militants managed to break out of lockup and held security personnel hostage. After the incident, police and security forces rushed to the spot but failed to free the hostages.

    Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif, Special Assistant to KP Chief Minister, said that talks between Pakistani officials and the leadership of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) are underway in Afghanistan, however, there is no breakthrough as yet.

    He also confirmed that a security official was killed in the Bannu compound by the militants and said that the government had engaged the militants to avoid casualties.

    The area where CTD is located has been sealed and residents have been asked to stay indoors. Internet services have been suspended in the city.

    Moreover, roads leading to and from Bannu Cantonment have been blocked.

  • ‘Ready to assist Pakistan with TTP threats’: US urges militants to release hostages

    ‘Ready to assist Pakistan with TTP threats’: US urges militants to release hostages

    The United States (US) has offered to help Pakistan in dealing with the threats posed by militant outfits.

    “Well, first, we are aware of the ongoing situation in Pakistan. We’ve been closely following reports that militants have seized control of the counterterrorism centre in Bannu. We offer our deepest sympathies to those injured,” said State Department Spokesperson Ned Price.

    Last week at least four police personnel were martyred and as many others wounded in an overnight terrorist attack on the Bargai police station of Lakki Marwat. Terrorists launched an armed assault on the police station from two sides. A fierce exchange of fire took place between the police and the outlaws, leaving four police officers dead and as many injured.

    On Sunday, militants detained at a facility run by Khyber Pakhtun­khwa police’s Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) in Bannu took over the department, held interrogators hostage, demanding a safe evacuation to Afghanistan. The outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) have claimed responsibility for the incident.

    “The government of Pakistan is a partner when it comes to these shared concerns, including the challenge of terrorist groups inside Afghanistan… terrorist groups along the Afghan-Pakistan border… we stand ready to assist, whether with this unfolding situation or other situations,” said Price.

    “We offer our deepest sympathies to those injured. We urge those responsible to cease all acts of violence, release the hostages and end the seizure of the counterterrorism centre,” he said.

    US State Department Spokesperson Ned Price made these remarks at a news briefing, hours after Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari reached Washington for talks with US officials.

  • ‘Apni hadd mein raho’: Male MNA reacts after female ministers unite to slam his remarks against Hina Rabbani

    ‘Apni hadd mein raho’: Male MNA reacts after female ministers unite to slam his remarks against Hina Rabbani

    Women Members of the National Assembly (MNAs) from treasury benches extended their support for State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Hina Rabbani Khar, after Jamaat-e-Islami’s (JI) MNA Abdul Akbar Chitrali criticised her on the recent visit to Afghanistan.

    MNA Chitrali said that he was not against any female minister, but he believed that the government should have included some tribal elders in the Khar-led delegation that visited Afghanistan.

    Minister for Climate Change Senator Sherry Rehman defended the decision, saying that if Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari decided to send a women delegation to [Kabul], he is correct in making this choice. “This is a message from Pakistan that this government and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) work and takes pride in promoting its women, protecting their rights and giving them representation,” she said.

    Quoting the example of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto, the minister said she was the first elected woman prime minister of Pakistan and was highly praised across the globe.

    “This debate on gender difference has ended in the entire world, as to who is a man and who a woman. People are known for their performance and merit and not for their gender. Our women are excelling internationally and continuing to do so,” said the minister.

    Referring to the incumbent government, she said: “We, being coalition partners, are on one page and Khar’s visit to Afghanistan has projected the soft image of Pakistan.”

    Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb also spoke up, asking that all parliamentarians, especially the male community, should encourage and acknowledge the competency of women ministers appointed on merit.

    “Hina represented Pakistan in Afghanistan. This is a moment of pride for the entire nation,” she said, rebuffing Chitrali’s objections.

    She said the Taliban rulers had no problem negotiating with Khar, who had taken up Pakistan’s concerns very well during her trip to Kabul.

    Right from Fatima Jinnah to Kulsoom Nawaz and Najma Hameed, she said, women had sacrificed to strengthen democracy in the country. They were all pride of Pakistan, she added.

    “This is a wrong impression from our side that such gender discriminations is happening in our own parliament, in Pakistan. I got emotional seeing Hina Rabbani Khar sahiba sitting at the table alongside the Afghanistan government doing the negotiations. We in Pakistan should be proud of her,” said Aurangzeb.

    Later, Chitrali took to the floor of the house and promptly got into a verbal dispute with Aurangzeb and PPP Federal Minister for Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Shazia Marri said, “Don’t try to scare me. I am not scared of anyone. Who are you? Aram say betho [ Sit down]. We respect women, but they should remain within their limits.”

    Ayaz Sadiq then intervened, after which Chitrali offered an apology, stating that he was sorry if his remarks hurt anyone.

    He added that his comments were taken in a negative context as he did not mean what his colleagues thought he had said.

  • US warns Taliban of action if terrorists ‘regroup’ in Afghanistan

    US warns Taliban of action if terrorists ‘regroup’ in Afghanistan

    The United States (US) has warned of action if the superpower sees “international terrorists regrouping in Afghanistan” while saying that US’ broader goal was to make sure that “terrorists and others aren’t able to use Afghanistan as a launch pad for attacks on Pakistan.”

    US State Department Spokesperson Ned Price, in a press briefing, stated: “We also have capabilities when it comes to counterterrorism in the region that does not leave us entirely beholden to the Taliban.”

    He also mentioned the killing of the al-Qaeda leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri by a US strike in August this year to prove the superpower’s capabilities to act against terrorists.

    The spokesperson also added that the Afghan Taliban had been “either unable or unwilling to live up to the commitments that they’ve made in a number of areas.”

    Answering a question, Price said, “Of course, we’ve seen other groups also active. You mentioned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), among others. We are determined to work with our partners in the region, including Pakistan, to do what we can to take on the threat of terrorism in the region, and certainly the threat of terrorism that extends well beyond the region.”

    Terming Pakistan an “important partner”, Price said that the US values its bilateral relationship with the country. “We welcome opportunities to expand cooperation in areas that are of mutual interest to us and to Pakistan. That, of course, does include when it comes to counterterrorism”, he added.

    Earlier this week, Pakistan’s Head of Mission to Kabul Ubaid-ur-Rehman Nizamani escaped an assassination bid in Afghanistan. Last month, a suicide attack— for which TTP claimed responsibility— rammed a police escort for a polio vaccination team in Quetta.

  • Hina Rabbani meets Deputy PM of Interim Afghan Govt

    Hina Rabbani meets Deputy PM of Interim Afghan Govt

    Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Hina Rabbani Khar, held a meeting with Deputy PM of Interim Afghan Govt. Abdul Salam Hanafi. Bilateral trade, connectivity & people-to-people contacts were discussed during the meeting.

    In the meeting matters of bilateral importance focused on political consultations between the two governments.

    She also held a meeting with Women Chamber of Commerce. During the meeting Pakistan expressed a keen interest in strengthening linkages between women entrepreneurs of Pakistan and Afghanistan.

    This visit is being perceived as important because it is led by a female minister and that this is a top Pakistani official’s first visit since the April government transition.

  • Pakistan Customs seizes 67 non-custom paid vehicles in an operation

    Pakistan Customs seizes 67 non-custom paid vehicles in an operation

    Pakistan Customs has impounded 67 non-custom paid vehicles in a crackdown against the smugglers in Quetta.

    67 non-custom paid vehicles, sugar, and fertiliser valued at approximately Rs336 million were confiscated in accordance with the Prime Minister’s goal to eradicate smuggling.

    The Customs team launched a crackdown in Nokandi, Quetta, and thwarted the attempt to smuggle goods across the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.

    Earlier, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) said on February 21 that non-custom paid vehicles worth Rs11.2 billion were seized between July 2021 and January 2022.

    During the July–January 2020–2021 period, smuggled goods worth a total of Rs35 billion were discovered, compared to Rs22 billion during the same time the previous year.

    Many people in Quetta continue to purchase non-custom vehicles despite the fact that they are illegal since they are much more expensive than legal or custom-paid vehicles.

    For instance, if a car is sold for Rs5 million at a dealership or local car market, it may be offered by smugglers for Rs2.5 million or even less. As these are smuggled vehicles, non-custom-paid automobiles are less expensive and lack the necessary paperwork or legal documents.

  • PM Shehbaz offers to talk to India but onus on New Delhi to take steps for ‘meaningful engagement’

    PM Shehbaz offers to talk to India but onus on New Delhi to take steps for ‘meaningful engagement’

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif said on Thursday he was “absolutely willing and ready” to engage with India for the sake of regional peace and prosperity, but the onus was on New Delhi to take necessary measures for “meaningful engagement“.

    While addressing the 6th summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia in Kazakhstan, the premier said, “I am absolutely ready and willing to have a serious dialogue and discussion with our counterparts, Indians, provided that they show sincerity of purpose and they show that they are ready to discuss issues that have really kept us at a distance over decades.”

    PM Sharif stressed that the people deserved that resources be diverted to their education and health.

    I want to leave behind a legacy of peace and progress

    “I want to leave behind a legacy of peace and progress for the prosperity of the coming generations of our region,” he said.

    “Pakistan’s first priority at the moment is to revive rapid and equitable economy,” he stated, regretting that issues that have kept the two countries apart had hampered the promotion of bilateral trade and investment.

    “This has to come to a stop,” he stressed, “but the onus remains on India to take the necessary steps for meaningful and result oriented-engagement.

    PM on Kashmir

    PM Sharif highlighted India’s unabated atrocities in Jammu and Kashmir for the last seven decades where Kashmiris faced the continued denial of their right to self-determination.

    He urged other countries to take notice of India’s “Bullet over ballot” policy as it blatantly quashed the United Nations Security Council’s resolution on holding a plebiscite in Kashmir.

    “India has become a threat to its minorities, neighbours and the entire region,” he said.

    Prosperous and stable Afghanistan is not only in the interest of Pakistan but also for the international community

    On Afghanistan, he said four decades of conflict took not only a heavy toll on the country but also upon Pakistan.

    Pakistan, he said, suffered immense damage to its peace and security with serious consequences in the shape of 80,000 casualties and billions of dollars in financial losses.

    The prime minister expressed satisfaction that after immense sacrifices, Pakistan was now able to control extremism and terrorism on its soil while managing to host four million Afghan refugees.

    “A prosperous and stable Afghanistan is not only in the interest of Pakistan, but also for the international community,” he said.

  • ‘Changing threat matrix of terrorism is need of the hour’: PM Shehbaz responds to Kabul suicide blast killing 19

    ‘Changing threat matrix of terrorism is need of the hour’: PM Shehbaz responds to Kabul suicide blast killing 19

    A suicide bomb attack on a classroom of hundreds of students preparing for exams in Kabul, Afghanistan on Friday killed at least 19 people.

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif, extending his condolences, said, “Deeply grieved at the loss of young lives in a horrific suicide attack at a learning center in Kabul. Words can’t express this sheer barbarism. We send our deepest condolences & most sincere sympathies to the bereaved families & people of Afghanistan.”

    He further tweeted, “As I stated in my address at UNGA, terrorism continues to threaten not just Afghanistan & Pakistan but also the world. The international community should not let its guard down. Strengthening global cooperation against changing threat matrix of terrorism is need of the hour.”

  • ‘Today’s India is changed’: Bilawal on getting no flood aid from India

    ‘Today’s India is changed’: Bilawal on getting no flood aid from India

    Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, in an interview with France 24, said that Pakistan is grateful for the global assistance it has received however the country does not want aid, it wants justice.

    He said, “Our message is that we don’t want to beg, we don’t want aid, we want justice. This is a global catastrophe as a result of global action and it requires a global situation.”

    When asked if India had offered any help and whether Pakistan had asked for any, the minister termed Pakistan-India relations as “complicated”.

    “We have a long and complicated history. unfortunately, India today is a changed India and is no longer the secular country promised by its founding fathers for all its citizens,” he said.

    He, further added that the country “is increasingly becoming a Hindu-supremacist India at the expense of its Christian and Muslim minorities not only within India but unfortunately in the disputed region of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).”

    He said Pakistan is seeing multiple challenges in the future such as health catastrophe, disease epidemics, crop shortage, livestock loss, food security, and more. However, he expressed hope saying, “Every crisis creates an opportunity and in this crisis, the opportunity is that we must build back in a more resilient way and greener way.”

    On Afghanistan and its tough rules and regulations on women, Bilawal said Pakistan had still not officially recognised the Afghan government.

    He said it would be in the Afghan government’s favour to fulfil its promises to the international community and its nation to gain legitimacy and a path to international recognition.

    When asked about the recent protest happening in Iran over a young woman’s death allegedly because of the morality police, Bilawal said he had seen the Iranian foreign minister’s response on the issue and said he trusted the neighbour to “keep to their word” for an incident inquiry despite “living in extremely difficult circumstances”.