Pakistan accused of killing eight women and children in Afghanistan air strikes
The Taliban has accused Pakistan of killing eight women and children in two overnight air strikes in Afghanistan. Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesperson for the Taliban government, said the “reckless” strikes had hit homes near the border with Pakistan at about 03:00 local time (22:30 GMT). Pakistan has yet to comment. But it comes after President Asif Ali Zardari vowed to “respond strongly” to the deaths of seven troops killed by unknown militants on Saturday. Speaking at the funeral of two of the troops on Sunday, President Zardari added that retaliation would come “regardless of who it is or from which country” the group came from. Saturday’s attack on the military post took place close to the Afghan border in north Waziristan. Pakistan says they were launched from Afghanistan – one of a rising number of attacks in recent months, the military say. In a statement to television, Pakistan’s military said Afghanistan had been a “safe haven” for militants, alleging the attacks had the “full support and assistance” of the Taliban. They did not mention the air strikes. But a local government official – who asked to remain anonymous – separately told news agency AFP that Monday morning’s attacks on Khost and Paktika provinces were in retaliation for Saturday’s deaths. The Taliban later announced its forces had targeted Pakistan’s military along the border. President of Pakistan Asif Ali Zardari attended the funerals of two of those killed on Saturday (BBC) Mr Mujahid had already warned Pakistan not to “blame Afghanistan for the lack of control and problems in its own territory” in a statement released on X (formerly Twitter). “Such incidents can have very bad consequences which will not be in Pakistan’s control,” he added. He said the strikes had hit “civilian homes”, killing five women and three children. Tensions have risen between Afghanistan and Pakistan since the Taliban retook control of the country in 2021. Late last year, Pakistan forced hundreds of thousands of Afghans to leave Pakistan, saying they did not have the correct paperwork to stay. Human Rights groups criticised the policy, saying it resulted in many refugees and asylum seekers being coerced into leaving. Caretaker ministers at the time suggested that this was done because of security concerns. Some analysts have suggested groups have taken advantage of the Taliban’s return, but the Taliban have denied hosting militant groups, AFP reports. (BBC)
