FO rejects India’s ‘groundless and unwarranted’ remarks about attacks against Afghan terrorist infrastructure

The Ministry of External Affairs (MOE) on Wednesday rejected what it said were “baseless, misleading and unjustified” remarks by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Pakistan’s ongoing crackdown on terror infrastructure in Afghanistan.

Pakistan has carried out airstrikes against terrorist targets in Afghanistan as part of the now temporarily halted Operation Ghazab Lil Haq. On Tuesday, the Taliban regime’s deputy spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat claimed in a post on X that an airstrike had hit the Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital, killing up to 400 people in the Afghan capital overnight.

However, Pakistan strongly rejected the Afghan Taliban’s claims, calling the allegations “completely baseless” and part of a wider pattern of disinformation aimed at distorting the facts. Information Minister Attaullah Tarar had said the attacks carried out on the night of March 16 were “precise, deliberate and professional”, targeting only military and terrorist infrastructure linked to attacks inside Pakistan.

India’s MEA had condemned the incident in a statement issued a day ago.

Read more: Operation Ghazab Lil Haq temporarily paused at the request of Saudi, Qatar and Turkiye in view of Eidul Fitr: Tarar

Responding to the MEA statement, the FO today said, “Pakistan rejects the baseless, misleading and unjustified statement issued by the Indian MEA on Pakistan’s ongoing action against terrorist infrastructure in Afghanistan.

“Given India’s active sponsorship of terrorism targeting Pakistan from Afghan soil, as well as its historical role as a spoiler, this statement merely reflects India’s blatant hypocrisy and duplicity.”

It said it must be remembered that Indian leadership remained unaccountable despite “instrumentalizing Islamophobia for domestic electoral gain and committing pogroms against its Muslim population”.

The FO said that just weeks ago its leadership pledged full and unequivocal support to “another occupying power responsible for the ongoing killing of thousands of innocent Palestinians”, apparently referring to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s expression of solidarity during a visit to Israel.

“It is absurd for a state that has historically undermined the sovereignty and territorial integrity of its neighboring countries, in violation of international law and the principles of the UN Charter, to comment on the maintenance of such principles.

“Such statements cannot divert attention from the fact that India has been and continues to suppress and deny the right to self-determination of Kashmiris in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, in violation of relevant UN resolutions,” it read.

The FO said India must desist from supporting and sponsoring terrorist groups operating from Afghan soil, including those listed under the UN Security Council sanctions list.

“In this regard, India should stop its misplaced lamentation over Pakistan’s successful counter-terrorism measures,” the FO concluded.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s foreign media spokesman, Mosharraf Zaidi, rejected the Afghan Taliban’s claims of targeting a hospital and civilians, adding that Pakistan’s latest attack in Afghanistan was solely targeting terrorists and based on accurate intelligence, driven solely by the need to protect its citizens, state broadcasters. Pakistan TV reported.

Read moreCM Bugti says that a major terror plan was foiled after the arrest of female suicide bomber

On Tuesday, the Taliban regime’s deputy spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat claimed in a post on X that an airstrike had hit the Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital, killing up to 400 people in the Afghan capital overnight. However, Pakistan strongly rejected the Afghan Taliban’s claims, calling the allegations “completely baseless” and part of a wider pattern of disinformation aimed at distorting the facts.

An official said Reuters today, with the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan putting the death toll in the alleged incident at 143.

Zaidi maintained that the target was “Camp Phoenix”, which he described as a long-standing weapons and training facility used by terrorist groups.

“The burden of proof is on those making the allegations,” he said, adding that no credible evidence has been presented to support claims that civilian infrastructure has been hit.

Zaidi noted that Pakistan did not view military action as a long-term solution but as a necessary response.

“We are pursuing a very specific, very targeted, very precise campaign against terrorist infrastructure,” he said, adding that operations will continue as long as threats to Pakistani citizens persist.

He further stressed that any pause in counter-terrorism operations would depend on “clear, measurable action” against the militant networks of the Afghan Taliban.

“Once there is a decisive break from support to these groups and the threat is eliminated, these strikes will stop,” Zaidi said, stressing that Pakistan’s priority remains the safety and security of its people.