Human Rights Minister Riaz Pirzada has said that he does not see the Afghan interim government’s involvement in recent terror incidents across Pakistan, adding that there are misunderstandings between the two countries.
The minister’s remarks come as a stark contradiction to recent statements issued by the government and the army who have repeatedly raised concerns over the use of Afghan soil by militants for cross-border terrorism.
Recently, an attack on a military installation in Balochistan’s Zhob Cantt, and another attack on security forces in Balochistan’s Sui resulted in the deaths of 12 soldiers. The perpetrators of the Zhob attacked were identified as Afghan nationals by the Foreign Office.
Last week, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had also urged the Afghan government to take “concrete measures” towards denying the use of its soil for terrorism.
Subsequently, Afghan Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada had warned Taliban members against carrying out attacks abroad.
A day ago, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir also raised the issue, saying that the “involvement of Afghan nationals” in terrorism incidents in Pakistan was “detrimental to regional peace [and] stability”, as well as deviation from the Doha Peace Agreement.
In an interview with Dawn News’ programme ‘Doosra Rukh’, which has yet to air, the human rights minister recalled the Afghan authorities’ statement forbidding attacks in Pakistan.
“A few things are taking place beyond [their knowledge] but as far as the Taliban … even today, their defence minister’s statement has come that they would not allow any person to commit any act against Pakistan and that this is not jihad.”
He went on to claim, “Payments are made through your neighbouring country and Afghanistan is named behind these actions as people have been bought there for 20 years after a lengthy war and these helpless people are being exploited.”
When asked about the increase in the number of Afghan nationals in Swat and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the minister said they were allowed into the country by the previous PTI government.
“They were the ones who were brought by your own people, who gave permission during the previous tenure to bring them in the [mainstream],” he said.
When asked if he thought there were “misunderstandings” between Afghanistan and Pakistan, Pirzada concurred. He went on to say that in his opinion, the Afghan leadership was being “quite honest with Iran, Saudi Arabia, China and Pakistan”.
The minister further said the blood of Pakistanis and Afghans was “the same”, highlighting the socio-cultural as well as linguistic ties between the two countries.
“So, I do not think that Afghanistan would be this disloyal to Pakistan. I do not accept this,” he said.
Pirzada also termed the Pakistan Army and the intelligence agencies as a “powerful war army, without which the country would have drowned by now”.