The Taliban on Monday taunted Pakistan and warned of a befitting response after the country’s interior minister Rana Sanaullah hinted at a possible military operation against the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) hideouts in Afghanistan.
Taliban leader and deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Yasir mocked Pakistan by sharing a photo on Twitter of Islamabad surrendering to India after the 1971 war that led to the formation of Bangladesh.
“Interior Minister of Pakistan! Excellent Sir! Afghanistan, Syria and Pakistan are not Turkey to target the Kurds in Syria. This is Afghanistan, the graveyard of proud empires. Do not think of a military attack on us, otherwise, there will be a shameful repetition of the military agreement with India,” Yasir said.
د پاکستان داخله وزیر ته !
عالي جنابه! افغانستان سوريه او پاکستان ترکیه نده چې کردان په سوریه کې په نښه کړي.
دا افغانستان دى د مغرورو امپراتوريو هديره.
په مونږ دنظامي يرغل سوچ مه کړه کنه دهند سره دکړې نظامي معاهدې د شرم تکرار به وي داخاوره مالک لري هغه چې ستا بادار يې په ګونډو کړ. pic.twitter.com/FFu8DyBgio
— Ahmad Yasir (@AhmadYasir711) January 2, 2023
The iconic photo shared by the Taliban leader is of the Pakistan Army’s commander in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) Lieutenant General Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi accepting the decisive defeat and signing the ‘Instrument of Surrender’ in Dhaka in the presence of General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) of Indian and Bangladesh Forces in Eastern Theatre Lieutenant General Jagjit Singh Aurora in 1971.
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Later in the day, Afghanistan’s defence ministry issued a statement refuting the claims of the Pakistani interior ministry that there are hideouts of TTP inside Afghanistan, terming it “false and provocative”.
“In the past, such provocative statements and claims have damaged the relationship between the two countries. We call on Pakistan to share its concerns with the Islamic Emirates of Afghanistan (IEA) and resolve the matter through dialogue,” the statement issued by the IEA’s interim Defence Minister Mullah Yaqoub stated.
“Afghanistan is not ownerless or without any heirs and like always, is ready to defend its country and the territorial security and its freedom. Any attempt of aggression perpetrated towards Afghanistan will be responded to befittingly. We are well prepared to respond to any offensive,” the statement added.
In a recent interview to a Pakistani news channel, the minister had said Islamabad may target the TTP in Afghanistan if Kabul does not take eliminate them.
“When these problems arise, we first ask Afghanistan, our Islamic brother nation, to eliminate these hideouts and hand over these individuals to us, but if that doesn’t happen, what you mentioned is possible,” Sanaullah had said.
