KABUL: Afghanistan’s Ministry of National Defense says it will deliver a “measured and calculated response” to the Pakistani military regime’s recent airstrike on parts of Nangarhar and Paktika provinces.
In a statement released Sunday morning, the ministry’s Strategic Communications Office condemned the attack on Afghan territory, describing it as a “clear violation of Afghanistan’s national sovereignty, a crime, and a blatant breach of international law, principles of good neighborliness, and Islamic values.”
The statement stressed: “Safeguarding the country’s territorial integrity and ensuring the security of its people are both a religious and national responsibility of the Ministry of National Defense. It warned that “at the appropriate time, a suitable and calculated response will be given, God willing.”
According to the ministry, the airstrike targeted “a religious school and several civilian homes” in parts of Nangarhar and Paktika. It said dozens of civilians, including women and children, were martyred or wounded in the attack.
The ministry added that attacks on civilian targets and religious centers demonstrate what it called the intelligence and security failures of Pakistan’s army, stating that such repeated acts of aggression will not conceal their internal shortcomings.
Earlier, Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesperson for the Islamic Emirate, also described the Pakistani airstrikes in Nangarhar and Paktika as a “major crime and act of aggression.”