Kabul: The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) and the country’s captain Rashid Khan have reacted sharply after the death of three young players in a Pakistani air strike on a civilian housing in the Paktika province on Friday.
Pakistan has been accused of violating a 48-hour truce between the two countries and carrying out the attack on civilian targets.
Khan responded to the attack by releasing a statement overnight on social media platform X. “I am deeply saddened by the loss of civilian lives in the recent Pakistani aerial strikes on Afghanistan,” he posted.
‘A tragedy that claimed the lives of women, children, and aspiring young cricketers who dreamed of representing their nation on the world stage,” he added.
The Afghanistan captain was critical in his statement against the attacks carried out by Pakistan, and also included a plea against the “grave violation of human rights,” which he said should not go unnoticed on the international stage.
“It is absolutely immoral and barbaric to target civilian infrastructure. These unjust and unlawful actions represent a grave violation of human rights and must not go unnoticed,” Khan wrote.
The ACB, meanwhile, announced its withdrawal from the upcoming Tri-Nation T20I series involving Pakistan following the airstrike.
“The Afghanistan Cricket Board expresses its deepest sorrow and grief over the tragic martyrdom of the brave cricketers from Urgun District in Paktika Province, who were targeted this evening in a cowardly attack carried out by the Pakistani regime,” the ACB posted on X.
Khan welcomed this decision and posted: “In light of the precious innocent souls lost, I welcome the ACB’s decision of withdrawing from upcoming fixtures against Pakistan. I stand with our people at this difficult time, our national dignity must come before all else.”
