ISLAMABAD: Pakistan said on Thursday (Nov 13) Afghan nationals carried out two deadly suicide bombings in its territory this week, amid sharpening tensions between the South Asian neighbours over militant violence.
The involvement of Afghans in the attacks - one outside a courthouse in the capital on Tuesday, the other at a military school the day earlier - was "our major, serious concern," Pakistan Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi told parliament.
He repeated accusations that the Afghan Taliban administration was supporting Islamist militants who attacked Pakistan.
The Afghan Taliban - which came to power in 2021 and has also accused Pakistan of backing ISIS-KP militants in its territory - denies that Pakistani militants are present on its soil.
"We have also, on many occasions during operations against ISIS-KP, killed, neutralised, or captured Pakistani nationals," Afghan Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid told Reuters after the minister's televised speech.
"That does not mean the entire Pakistani nation behaves that way or that their government is responsible," Mujahid added.
Court building, school hit
A suicide bomber blew himself up close to a police patrol outside a lower court in Islamabad on Tuesday, killing 12 people and wounding 27.
Another bomber rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into the main gate of a military school in South Waziristan district, near the Afghan border, on Monday, killing three people.
Militants then entered the school, which is run by the military but educates civilians, triggering a fight with Pakistani soldiers that continued for more than 24 hours until all of the attackers were killed.
Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have been strained in recent years. Dozens of soldiers and civilians were killed in border clashes between the two countries last month.
Adding to regional tensions, Pakistan is also locked in confrontation with India, with whom it fought a four-day war in May.
Rivalry with India
Islamabad says the Pakistani Taliban and other militants based in Afghanistan are supported by India, a charge New Delhi denies.
India and Pakistan have for decades vied for influence in Afghanistan, an unstable but geopolitically vital country both see as crucial to their security.
The Pakistani Taliban, or Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, have been waging a war against the Pakistani state since 2007 in a bid to overthrow the government and replace it with their own brand of Islamic governance. - Reuters
