Taliban regime must rein in India-backed proxies using Afghan soil for terror attacks in Pakistan: Field Marshal

Following heightened tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir has issued a stern call to the Taliban regime, urging it to take firm and immediate action against terrorist proxies using Afghan soil to launch attacks inside Pakistan.

The army chief, who was addressing a passing-out parade at the Pakistan Military Academy (PMA) Kakul on Saturday, urged the people of Afghanistan to choose “mutual peace and security over violence”.

The Taliban regime, he also said, should act decisively against militant proxies operating from its soil for terrorist activities in Pakistan.

The field marshal was attending the passing-out parade of the 152nd PMA Long Course, 37th Technical Graduate Course, 71st Integrated Course, and 26th Lady Cadet Course, as the chief guest.

The COAS’s remarks came a day after the extension of a temporary truce between Pakistan and Afghanistan, following days of fierce fighting that left dozens dead and hundreds wounded.

In his address to the graduating cadets, Field Marshal Munir expressed confidence in the nation’s unity and resolve. He said, “With Allah’s blessings and binding national resolve, people of all hues and colours, age, gender, ethnicity or creed stood firm and tough like a wall of steel.” 

This, he added, led to a renewed spirit of patriotism and national fervour which prevails across the length and breadth of Pakistan.

The army chief celebrated the country’s recent success against India, saying that Pakistan once again came out victorious against the treacherous enemy, marked by strategic blindness and naivety about its misguided hegemonic ambitions. 

He criticised India’s eagerness to adjudge culpability, evade neutral investigations, and stage self-created evidence as indicative of politicisation of terrorism for the vested interests of the ruling regime.

“Pakistan gained deep respect and admiration from the people of Pakistan and the international community because of the legitimacy and clear victory against a numerically superior adversary. 

“Internally, it has further unified the nation and strengthened its resolve to defend against any threat, whether external or internal. It has reinforced the confidence, particularly among the youth, that the armed forces of Pakistan are an essential element of national power and trusted with the responsibility to protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the state.

“Let me assure the nation that with the help and mercy of Allah, the Almighty, and with the support of the people, we will not lose an inch of the sacred land, and from here on you all shall be contributing to the same cause,” he said.

COAS Munir proudly saluted the people of Pakistan, every soldier, sailor, airman, the brave men, women, children and elderly who laid their lives during the testing times, and the Ghazis who fought with utmost conviction to defend the motherland at all costs.

‘No space for war in a nuclearised environment’ 

The army chief came down hard on India, asserting that “there is no space for war in a nuclearised environment,” and warning that Pakistan’s battle-hardened army will respond well beyond the expectations of any initiators if hostility is triggered.

He said that the Pakistan Army has fought for over two decades in the sub-conventional domain, successfully displaying its capabilities in conventional domains as well by delivering a swift and decisive blow to the adversary.

“Should a fresh wave of hostilities be triggered, Pakistan would respond much beyond the expectation of the initiators. With diminishing distinction between combat and communication zones, the reach and lethality of our weapon systems will shatter the misconceived immunity of India’s geographic vastness,” the COAS said.

“I advise and firmly caution the Indian military leadership that there is no space for war in a nuclearised environment,” he added.

This is a developing story and is being updated with more details.