The Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency (PILDAT) has issued a report detailing its assessment of the recently-concluded general election, expressing deep concerns over a decline in fairness scores compared to previous election cycles.
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