Jalil says Afghan govt has arrested terrorists who attacked Pakistan

Jilani was answering questions during a press conference at the Foreign Office in Islamabad

ISLAMABAD (Web Desk) – Caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani has said that the Afghan government had arrested some terrorists involved in attacks in Pakistan and conveyed to authorities in Islamabad.

Jilani was answering questions on Wednesday during a press briefing at the Foreign Office in Islamabad.

In the backdrop of Pakistan’s concern on the banned terrorist outfit Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) having safe havens in Afghanistan, the foreign minister said Islamabad has been engaging in dialogues with the Taliban government on the issue.

It may be recalled that terrorist attacks in Pakistan increased after the TTP ended ceasefire agreement with Islamabad in November last. Pakistan’s military leadership and former prime minister raised the issue with Kabul after evidence of involvement of Afghan citizens’ involvement in terrorism in Pakistan surfaced.

Taliban spokesperson in Qatar Suhail Shaheen, while addressing the issue, assured Pakistan that Kabul would not allow anyone to use the Afghan soil against any other country. However, government’s spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid took a divergent view of the situation and advised Pakistan to “resolve its internal problems itself, instead of pointing fingers at others.”

On the other hand, the Afghan supreme leader had warned Taliban members against carrying out cross-border attacks. But merely days later, the Afghan authorities had alleged that dozens of banned Islamic State (IS) militants from Pakistan were killed or captured in Afghanistan in the past year.

Meanwhile, a Pakistan media report quoted an official from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) as saying that Islamabad and Kabul were in contact with each other to address the issue of militancy.

A United Nations’ recent report said the TTP and other gro¬ups affiliated with the Taliban and Al Qaeda were providing Nato-calibre weapons to the militant IS gro¬up and continue to pose a serious threat in conflict zones and neighbouring countries.

INTERNAL POLITICS

Regarding elections, the caretaker minister said the interim setup was responsible for holding free and fair elections. “But holding the polls is the Election Commission’s job, not of the interim government,” he added.

“This is a non-political setup and we will not get involved in politics. As an interim setup, we will operate within our jurisdiction,” Jilani continued.

On the cricket World Cup to be held in India, he expressed the hope that New Dehli would provide complete security to the Pakistani team.

He said any talks with India would be held keeping in view Pakistan’s principled position and stressed that a resolution to the Kashmir issue should be in line with the expectations of the people of the valley and UN resolutions.