Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid has rejected Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s claim that armed groups are using Afghan territory to carry out attacks in Pakistan’s Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces, calling the allegations “baseless.”
In an audio message released to the media on Friday, Mujahid said the Taliban do not allow any foreign militant groups to operate inside Afghanistan. He warned that repeating such accusations would only increase tensions and further damage relations between Kabul and Islamabad.
His comments came a day after Shehbaz Sharif, speaking at a meeting of Pakistan’s National Action Plan implementation committee in Quetta, alleged that “terrorists based in Afghanistan” were coordinating attacks in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The Pakistani prime minister also accused India of providing financial and military support to armed groups and said Pakistan’s political and military leadership had resolved to continue operations until militant organizations were completely defeated.
Sharif’s remarks followed a series of deadly attacks in Balochistan. Pakistani authorities said the assaults killed members of the security forces and civilians, adding that security operations later killed 54 alleged attackers.
Pakistan has repeatedly accused the Taliban of providing sanctuary to members of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other militant groups since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan. The Taliban have consistently denied those accusations.
The dispute over the alleged presence of the TTP in Afghanistan remains one of the main sources of friction between the two neighbors. Pakistan has carried out several airstrikes inside Afghanistan, saying it targeted TTP positions, while Taliban forces have at times responded by firing on Pakistani military positions along the border.
The continuing exchange of accusations underscores the fragile state of Afghanistan-Pakistan relations, with border security and cross-border militancy remaining key points of contention between the two sides.
