Tarar says cricket’s governing body must remain impartial and avoid political entanglements
Minister of Information Attaullah Tarar. PHOTO: FILE
Information Minister Atta Tarar has categorically rejected the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) ‘selective, biased and premature’ statement regarding the death of three Afghan cricketers, who claimed they were killed in an ‘airstrike in Paktika’.
The Afghanistan Cricket Board had said in a statement that three local cricketers were killed in a military strike in Paktika province and announced its withdrawal from next month’s tri-nation series with Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Later, in a statement, the ICC condemned the attack and said it stands in solidarity with the ACB and shares their grief. “The ICC is deeply saddened and shocked by the tragic deaths of three young and promising Afghan cricketers, Kabeer Agha, Sibghatullah and Haroon, who lost their lives in a recent airstrike in Afghanistan’s Paktika province,” cricket’s global governing body said in a statement.
Read more: Three Afghan cricketers killed in attack: cricket board
“The ICC strongly condemns this act of violence that has devastated the families, communities and the world of cricket of three bright talents whose only ambition was to play the sport they loved.”
The unsubstantiated and one-sided statement prompted the information minister to issue a response calling it a “selective, biased and premature” remark that furthers a contested claim.
Pakistan, a primary victim of cross-border terrorism, rejects the ICC’s selective, biased and premature commentary making a disputed claim as established that three “Afghan cricketers” died in an “airstrike”. The ICC has not cited any independent verification to substantiate…
— Attaullah Tarar (@TararAttaullah) 18 October 2025
“Pakistan, a primary victim of cross-border terrorism, rejects the ICC’s commentary that makes a disputed claim,” Tarar said in a post on X.
He said the ICC has not cited any independent verification to substantiate these claims, saying Pakistan strongly rejects the characterization, disputes the ICC’s claim and calls for immediate correction.
He added that the ICC’s handling of the case reflected a wider pattern of “amplification without evidence” and “narrative manipulation.”
Also read: Many killed in ‘precision strike’ on ‘Kharji Gul Bahadur camps in Paktika’: officials
“We are noticing a worrying pattern of amplification without any attempt at evidence collection,” he said. “Within hours of the ICC release, its chairman, Jay Shah, publicly repeated the same claim on X, and the Afghanistan Cricket Board followed suit, explicitly citing the ICC’s statement rather than providing details or evidence. This sequencing is an attempt to produce an apparent echo chamber.”
The minister also referred to what he described as India’s attempts to influence cricket administration, citing past controversies involving Pakistan.
“This episode follows a pattern of inevitable controversies under the ICC’s current leadership that has disproportionately sought to influence Pakistan cricket – including the recent ‘handshake controversy’ that delayed Pakistan’s Asia Cup match until a solution was found,” Tarar said, adding: “These incidents have eroded confidence in the ICC’s neutrality.”
He stressed that the ICC must maintain impartiality and refrain from political entanglements. “A global regulator must not appear to be pushing any biased narrative,” he said. “Pakistan has consistently maintained that politics must not pollute the sport, particularly cricket, and urges the ICC to uphold its independence and the spirit of the game.”
The minister concluded by saying that Pakistan expected the ICC to “restore its neutrality, international standards of fair play and impartial conduct and address the dangerous precedent of entangling a global sports regulator in narratives linked to violent extremists.”
