Former Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai on Friday strongly condemned what he described as renewed Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan cities, asserting that the Afghan people would respond to any aggression with unity and courage.
Karzai’s comments came after Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif declared an ‘open war’ on the Taliban government in Afghanistan on Friday, hours after Pakistan carried out airstrikes in Kabul and two other Afghan provinces in what it called a ‘retaliation’ to Afghanistan’s earlier cross-border attack.
“The Pakistani aircraft once again bombed Kabul, Kandahar, and Paktia. The Afghans will defend their beloved homeland with complete unity in all circumstances and will respond to aggression with courage,” Karzai wrote in a post on X.
Karzai served as the seventh president of Afghanistan from 2002 to 2014. He also served as chairman of the Afghan Interim Administration from 2001 to 2002.
He accused Islamabad of continuing a pattern of military aggression. He said Afghans would defend their “beloved homeland with complete unity in all circumstances”.
Earlier, Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said that at least 133 Afghan Taliban operatives were killed and more than 200 were injured.
“Afghan Taliban defence targets in Kabul, Paktia, and Kandahar were targeted, with the possibility of further casualties,” he said, adding that at least 27 posts of the Afghan Taliban regime were destroyed, and nine other posts were captured.
‘Pakistan cannot free itself from the violence’
The former Afghanistan President also criticised Pakistan’s internal security policies, claiming that Islamabad could not free itself from the cycle of violence through cross-border strikes. “Pakistan cannot free itself from the violence and bombings–those problems it has created itself–but must change its own policy and choose the path of good neighborliness, respect, and civilized relations with Afghanistan,” he added.
Earlier, the Ministry of National Defence of Afghanistan said that 55 Pakistani soldiers were killed in retaliatory operations carried out along the Durand Line on Thursday.
The 2,611 km (1,622 miles) border between the two countries, known as the Durand Line, has never been officially recognised by Afghanistan.
In a press release, the ministry said the action was launched at 8:00 PM on the 9th of Ramadan, corresponding to 26 February, in response to what it described as a violation of Afghan territory by Pakistani military forces days earlier.
“A few days ago, the Pakistani military circles, with great audacity, violated Afghan territory, breached our borders, and martyred women and children here,” the statement read.
Along the Durand Line
The ministry said that Afghan forces targeted Pakistani military posts in the eastern and southeastern directions along the Durand Line, near the provinces of Paktika, Paktia, Khost, Nangarhar, Kunar and Nuristan.
“In these retaliatory operations along the Durand Line, a total of 55 Pakistani soldiers were killed, two bases and 19 posts were captured,” the statement said.
It further stated that the four-hour operation destroyed two Pakistani military bases and 19 posts, while soldiers fled from four other posts. The ministry also claimed that an enemy tank was destroyed and a large military transport vehicle was captured.
“During these operations, dozens of light and heavy weapons, ammunition, and military supplies were seized by Afghan forces,” it said.
The statement added that eight Afghan fighters were killed and 11 others were injured during the operation. It also alleged that 13 civilians were injured in a missile attack on a refugee camp in Nangarhar.
“In this retaliatory operation, 8 of our Mujahideen achieved the high status of martyrdom, and 11 others were injured,” the ministry said.
Operation ‘Ghazab Lil Haq’
In retaliation, Pakistan launched what it called Operation ‘Ghazab Lil Haq’ targeting the Afghan Taliban regime, as reported by ARY News.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s spokesperson Mosharraf Zaidi confirmed that 133 Afghan Taliban fighters have been killed and over 200 wounded. The operations have also destroyed 27 Taliban posts and captured nine, as reported by Geo News.
The Afghans will defend their beloved homeland with complete unity in all circumstances and will respond to aggression with courage.
Pakistani security forces carried out retaliatory operations across multiple border areas, including Chitral, Khyber, Mohmand, Kurram, and Bajaur districts, destroying several Afghan Taliban posts, ARY News reported.
(With agency inputs)
