Pakistani Military Kills 30 Cross-Border Terrorists Allegedly from Afghanistan

In the past month, Pakistan’s military has reported killing nearly 30 “terrorists” in operations against a recent surge in terrorist attacks and militant infiltration attempts from Afghanistan, VOA reported yesterday.

The announcement comes a day after a U.S. research group warned that “Afghanistan has become a breeding ground for terrorist activities” since the Taliban regained power in 2021.

The Pakistani military stated its counterterrorism actions have focused on border regions of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Baluchistan provinces. One operation a week ago also resulted in the death of an army major.

“Of late, Pakistan has witnessed a surge in terrorist incidents orchestrated from Afghan soil, wherein terrorists from Afghanistan attempt to infiltrate through the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and target security forces as well as innocent civilians,” the military statement said.

Islamabad renewed its call for the Taliban government in Kabul to fulfill its obligations and ensure effective border management to deny the use of Afghan territory by terrorists for attacks against Pakistan.

The Washington-based Center for a New American Security recently warned that terrorist threats from Afghanistan are intensifying, with the regional Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) group and the Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) affiliate posing major concerns.

The report also cited a U.N. assessment highlighting the Taliban’s close ties to al-Qaida operatives who are now part of the Afghan government’s administrative structure.

It is worth mentioning that Pakistan and the U.S. recently agreed to intensify collaboration in countering the TTP and IS-K threats in the region.