The Foreign Office (FO) on Thursday categorically rejected reports claiming that Pakistan had carried out airstrikes in Afghanistan, terming them to be \u201cutterly baseless and malicious\u201d.
\nThe statement came hours after reports surfaced claiming Pakistan had carried out airstrikes in Afghanistan\u2019s Nangarhar province.
\nAfghan newspaper Hasht-e-Subh Daily quoted sources as saying that Pakistan \u201cbombed targets in Salala neighborhood in the vicinity of Gushta district\u201d on Thursday morning.
\nThe development comes amid an uptick in terrorist attacks across the country, believed to have been planned and directed by the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) leaders based in Afghanistan.
\nThe TTP, which has ideological linkages with the Afghan Taliban, executed around more than 100 attacks last year, most of which happened after August when the group\u2019s peace talks with the Pakistan government began to falter. The ceasefire was formally ended last year on Nov 28 by the TTP.
\nIt also comes as the Nat\u00adional Security Committee (NSC) categorically asked Afghanistan\u2019s Taliban rulers, without directly naming them, to deny safe haven to Pakistani terrorist groups on its soil and end their patronage, while reiterating its intent to crush terrorist groups operating inside the country with full force.
\nThe uncharacteristically strong-worded statement issued at the end of the NSC meeting, which spanned two days, said: \u201cPakistan\u2019s security is uncompromisable and the full writ of the state will be maintained on every inch of the (sic) Pakistan\u2019s territory.\u201d
\nThe committee agreed on a number of steps to deal with the worsening security situation, which has also drawn the attention of a number of important capitals prompting them to issue advisories for their nationals residing here.
\nThe most important of all these actions was to send an unequivocal message to neighbouring Afghanistan to end all its support to TTP. \u201cNo country will be allowed to provide sanctuaries and facilitation to terrorists and Pakistan reserves all rights in that respect to safeguard her people,\u201d the NSC statement said.
\nThe warning was sent out in the midst of an escalating war of words between the two countries over TTP and the border dispute.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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