Kabul: The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) carried out multiple strikes on Afghanistan’s capital Kabul on Thursday night. The attack came hours after Pakistan’s defence minister Khawaja Asif issued a warning, saying “enough is enough,” and declared that Islamabad can no longer tolerate the alleged safe havens operating within Afghanistan.
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid was quoted by Dawn as saying that explosions were heard in Kabul but there were no reports of any damage.
“The sound of an explosion was heard in the city of Kabul. However, no one should worry, it is all well and good, the investigation of the incident is underway, no report of any damage has been given so far,” Mujahid is quoted as saying.
It is significant that Pakistan’s strike on Afghanistan comes at a time when the latter’s acting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is on a visit to India and is scheduled to meet external affairs minister S Jaishankar on Friday.
“Enough is enough, our patience has run out. Terrorism from Afghan soil is intolerable.” Khawaja Asif had told Pakistan’s National Assembly on Thursday.
The Pakistani defence minister also said that he and other senior officials had visited Kabul three years ago and warned terrorists operating from the city to shut down their hideouts, but received no firm guarantees.
“We told Afghan officials that 6,000-7,000 people were settled on your soil who pose a threat to us,” he said, adding that Kabul even suggested a financial arrangement to keep those individuals there.
“We demanded guarantees that these individuals would not return to Pakistan, but Afghan authorities were not willing to give those assurances,” Khawaja Asif informed the Assembly.
While there are reports of PAF jeta being seen over Kabul, Pakistan has not confirmed the airstrike as yet.
Kabir Haqmal, a former BBC journalist and ex-lecturer at Kabul University, wrote on X that loud explosions were heard in Kabul, followed by a series of gunfire.
Many believe that this action is a diversionary tactic by Pakistan to show the world that it is serious about countering terrorism. In reality, the country remains the biggest sponsor of terrorism.
