ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said on Tuesday Pakistan was not interested in fighting with India or Afghanistan, though he said his country would “pay back in the same coins” if it was targeted by its enemies after a suicide attack in Islamabad killed at least 12 people and injured more than 30.
The attack took place at the entrance of a court complex in the capital city’s G-11 sector, crowded at the time with litigants and lawyers. Federal Information Minister Ataullah Tarar said all those who orchestrated the suicide bombing would be identified and brought to justice while also referring to another militant assault targeting a cadet college in the northwestern Wana district where security sources said all assailants had been killed.
Authorities in Islamabad blamed the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella organization of militants, for carrying out both attacks. Pakistan blames Afghanistan for sheltering TTP militants and facilitating cross-border attacks with support from India, though Kabul and New Delhi deny the accusations.
The militant assaults have strained ties between Pakistan and Afghanistan leading to border clashes last month and failed talks mediated by Qatar and Türkiye. The Afghan foreign ministry issued a statement condemning the attacks in Wana and Islamabad on Tuesday.
“Condemning [an attack] or expressing regret cannot be taken as a proof of truth,” the defense minister said in an interview with Geo TV. “Security is telling us that the terrorist [in Wana] ... were in contact with Afghans. We have the capacity. We can take care of them.”
He said Pakistan did not want to get involved in conflict like this, adding that its focus was on strengthening its economy.
“I want to make clear to both the West and the East that Pakistan is not interested in fighting with them,” he said. “Not with Afghanistan, not with India either. We are going through a process where we are consolidating the economic gains of our country.”
“Having said that,” he added, “if aggression is carried out against us, we will not let it go unanswered ... I assure India, Afghanistan and the international community that if we are targeted, we will pay back in the same coins.”
The minister noted the attack in Islamabad was intended to demonstrate the militants’ ability to strike within the capital.
He offered a stark assessment of the militant threat, saying thousands of fighters had been moved into Pakistan over the past year and arguing that a majority of those killed in operations were Afghan nationals.
“Approximately 2,500 to 3,000 people have been sent here in the past year,” he said, and “approximately 55 percent of the terrorists who have been killed were Afghans.”
Asked about possible military responses, he said retaliation could not be ruled out, though he reiterated Pakistan’s preference for peace.
