ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – Pakistani military has issued a strong warning to the Afghan Taliban regime, urging it to make what officials described as a “clear choice” between supporting terrorist organisations and maintaining relations with Pakistan.
The statement came as the armed forces released extensive new details about Operation Ghazab-lil-Haq and the recent escalation along the Pak-Afghan border as Islamabad took a hardened stance following what it termed coordinated cross-border aggression.
Director General Inter-Services Public Relations Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry told reporters that Pakistan’s position had been consistent and repeatedly communicated. He said the Afghan Taliban regime must decide whether it stands with Pakistan or with groups including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), Daesh and Al-Qaeda.
“I want to make one thing clear: the oppressive Afghan Taliban regime has to make a clear choice – choose between TTP, BLA, Daesh, Al-Qaeda, terrorists and terrorist organisations and between Pakistan,” the military spokesperson said. He added that Islamabad’s own position was unequivocal and unchanged.
Responding to a question regarding whether the PTI-led Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government was coordinating with the armed forces, the DG ISPR stressed that the country’s political leadership was aligned on the issue of terrorism. He said that despite political differences, there was complete national consensus against militancy.
“Let there be no doubt that whatever political division we may have, whatever perspectives we may have, all political parties and leaderships are absolutely clear that there is no space for terrorism or its facilitation in Pakistan,” he said.
Lt-Gen Chaudhry noted that the National Action Plan had been formulated with the consent of all political parties and continued to be respected across the political spectrum.
India behind attacks in Pakistan
During the briefing, the military spokesperson also brought Indian involvement in militant attacks inside Pakistan to light. He maintained that there was a “tangible trace” of Indian sponsorship behind terrorist incidents.
“Behind every terrorist attack was Indian sponsorship, abettment and design,” he claimed, adding that militants were operating from Afghan territory. According to the DG ISPR, the Afghan Taliban regime was serving as the base of operations for such activities.
Despite the allegations, he emphasised that Pakistan’s armed forces remained fully prepared to respond to threats on both the eastern and western borders. The military, he said, was maintaining heightened vigilance across all fronts.
No safe haven
The DG ISPR issued a blunt warning regarding future responses to terrorism. He said any location used to plan or support attacks inside Pakistan would be treated as a legitimate target.
“It must be made clear that if there is terrorism in any place, any city in Pakistan, any suicide bombing – wherever there are not just terrorists but their guardians and those who protect them, none of their places will be safe either,” he said.
He further warned that perpetrators of terrorist incidents against Pakistan would not remain safe anywhere, signalling a continuation of cross-border counterterrorism actions if required.
Operation Ghazab-lil-Haq
Providing updated figures from Operation Ghazab-lil-Haq, the military spokesman said that so far 274 Afghan Taliban regime personnel and fighters had been killed, while more than 400 were injured. He described the figures as based on available battlefield assessments.
The military spokesperson said Pakistani forces destroyed 73 enemy posts and captured 18 during the engagements. He added that, according to a conservative estimate, 115 tanks, armoured personnel carriers and artillery pieces belonging to opposing forces were eliminated.
The DG ISPR said the engagements demonstrated the precision of Pakistan’s response. “All their posts, their gun positions, their tank positions were taken out. Their battalion headquarters and sector headquarters were taken out,” he said.
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According to the military, 22 locations across Kabul, Kandahar, Paktia, Nangarhar, Khost and Paktika were selected based on intelligence inputs. These sites included what officials described as core headquarters of Afghan Taliban forces, brigade and battalion headquarters, sector command facilities, ammunition depots and logistics bases.
The DG ISPR stressed that the targets were chosen carefully to avoid civilian casualties. “All these targets were very carefully selected based on intelligence… great care was exercised so that there is no civilian collateral damage,” he said.
He rejected claims circulating in Afghan and Indian-linked media that civilian infrastructure had been hit, calling them misinformation. According to the military, all strikes were directed exclusively at military objectives from where attacks against Pakistan had originated.
Drone intercepts
The DG ISPR also revealed that what he described as “rudimentary” drones were launched from Afghan territory towards Sibi, Abbottabad and Nowshera. Pakistan’s anti-drone systems successfully neutralised the threats, he said.
The attempted drone attacks, he added, reflected what he called the Afghan Taliban regime’s role as a “master proxy”. He further remarked that the distinction between the Afghan Taliban authorities and terrorist groups had become increasingly blurred.
“It has become difficult to distinguish where the Taliban regime ends and where terrorism starts,” he said during the briefing.
Pakistani casualties
Lieutenant General Chaudhry confirmed that Pakistan suffered losses during the clashes. He said 12 soldiers were martyred while safeguarding the country’s territorial integrity, with 27 others injured and one soldier still missing in action.
Despite the casualties, he said the armed forces had delivered what he termed an “effective, immediate and brutal response” to the aggression. He also praised public support for the military, stating that the armed forces drew strength and resolve from the people of Pakistan.
The military spokesperson maintained that Pakistan remained on high alert across all sensitive sectors. He reiterated that the armed forces were prepared to respond to any future aggression and that counterterrorism operations would continue wherever threats emerged.
Officials indicated that enforcement measures, including the nationwide drone ban, would remain in place until the security situation stabilises. Authorities have already issued implementation directives to all provinces.