ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari on Sunday said that the country’s precision airstrikes on seven terrorist camps and hideouts along the Pakistan–Afghanistan border were “rooted in its inherent right to defend its people against terrorism emanating from across its borders, and follow repeated warnings that went unheeded.”
According to the country’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the strikes targeted camps linked to Fitna al Khwarij groups, Islamabad’s term for Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, and Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), responsible for recent attacks on Pakistani soil. Earlier this month, a suicide bombing near Islamabad martyred numerous people and injured more than 100 during Friday prayers, the city administration said.
In a press release issued by the Press Information Department, the president said that Pakistan had cautioned the international community that “when terrorist groups are allowed space, facilitation or impunity beyond national borders, the consequences are borne by innocent civilians all over the world.”
The president said that it was a matter of deep concern that the authorities in Kabul continued to permit terrorist elements to operate from Afghan soil in violation of their commitments under the Doha Accord.
Referring to the United Nations Security Council’s report, President Zardari said that it reinforced Pakistan’s long-standing position, observing that the assessment made it “clear that the presence and activities of these organizations pose serious threats to neighboring countries, including Pakistan.”
He said it is regrettable that despite clear warnings and repeated engagement, the Afghan authorities failed to take credible and verifiable action against these elements.
He reaffirmed that Pakistan “exercised restraint for a considerable period and confined its response to terrorist hideouts located near the border areas,” however, the country was “fully aware of where the planners, facilitators and patrons of violence are based.”
“If bloodshed continues inside Pakistan, those responsible will not remain beyond reach,” the president said, according to the press release.
The president said that Pakistan sought “peace, stability and cooperative relations with all its neighbors,” but peace could not “rest on denial, duplicity or inaction against terrorism.”
“The protection of Pakistani lives remains paramount and non-negotiable,” President Zardari said.
.jpg)
