PESHAWAR: Pakistan’s security forces swung into action after Afghan Taliban fighters launched unprovoked attacks along the border between both countries under the cover of darkness, the government said on Thursday night.
However, they received “an immediate and effective response” from Pakistan’s security forces, the information ministry said in a statement.
The action — dubbed ‘Operation Ghazab Lil Haq’ — continued into the early hours of Friday, and by state media reports suggested the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) had joined the response, targeting Afghan positions, including an ammunition depot in Nangarhar province, inflicting substantial damage.
However, there was no official word from Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) until going to press.
Authorities in Kabul had claimed launching a large-scale offensive, calling it a response to Pakistani strikes against terrorist hideouts on Afghan soil over the weekend.
Islamabad squarely blames Kabul for allowing terrorists aligned with the outlawed TTP and so-called Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) groups to use its soil as a safe haven.
Earlier, in its weekly briefing on Thursday, the Foreign Office had said that the strikes against terrorist sanctuaries in Afghanistan were carried out to pre-empt imminent attacks inside Pakistan, and that utmost caution was exercised to avoid civilian casualties.
‘Heavy casualties inflicted’
According to the information ministry, Pakistani forces had inflicted heavy losses on the Afghan Taliban in the Chitral, Khyber, Mohmand, Kurram and Bajaur sectors.
According to security sources, Afghan Taliban fired at various places on the Pak-Afghan border. A counter-attack saw their positions destroyed, forcing the Afghan fighters to flee, they said.
Giving details, sources said that Afghan positions across the border from the Chitral and Bajaur sectors were destroyed, while forces responded with full force to excursions in the Nawagai sector of Bajaur, Tirah in Khyber, Mohmand district and the Arandu sector of Chitral.
