ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s military campaign, Operation Ghazab lil-Haq, entered its fourth day on Monday with intensified strikes inside Afghanistan. It has killed 435 operatives and destroyed 188 checkposts, according to official updates.
In a statement posted to X (Twitter) at 3 p.m. local time, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar reported that Pakistani forces injured more than 630 others since the multi-domain offensive began on Feb. 26.
He confirmed that 31 posts were captured and 188 tanks, armored vehicles, and artillery guns were destroyed. Tarar stated that 51 locations across Afghanistan were "effectively targeted by air."
The Director General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, has defined the operation as a "measured and proportionate response" to unprovoked cross-border aggression. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Tahir Andrabi called the engagement an “effective and forceful response” to safeguard territorial integrity during a weekly press briefing on Feb. 26.
Addressing a joint sitting of Parliament on Monday, President Asif Ali Zardari warned Afghanistan’s interim government to dismantle terrorist groups operating from its territory. He said that Pakistan would not tolerate cross-border attacks and "will respond decisively" to any aggression.
"The Taliban regime saw with shock and awe what Pakistan could do if pushed past the red line," Zardari said. He added that security forces acted quickly to signal zero tolerance for incursions into sovereign territory.
The President noted that despite repeated diplomatic engagements, the Afghan de facto regime continues to provide safe havens to groups, including the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan and IS-KP. He said that commitments made during talks in Doha to prevent such activity have been ignored.
Pakistan's defense minister, Khawaja Asif, characterized the current security climate as an "open war," stating that national patience regarding border incursions has been exhausted.
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