Pakistan told the United Nations Security Council that more than 4,700 Pakistani citizens have been killed in terrorist attacks over the past three years that it says originated from militant groups operating from Afghanistan territory, renewing accusations against the Taliban administration over cross-border militancy.
Speaking during a Security Council session marking the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, said militant groups including Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and the BLA’s Majeed Brigade continue to operate from safe havens inside Afghanistan. He also alleged the groups receive “significant external support.”
Ahmad said the TTP and BLA have carried out some of the “most brutal” terrorist attacks against Pakistan in recent years, adding that the growing militant threat remains one of Islamabad’s most pressing national security concerns.
Pakistan’s envoy criticized the UN Security Council for failing to impose sanctions on the Balochistan Liberation Army, saying Islamabad’s efforts to designate the group under the council’s sanctions regime have so far been unsuccessful.
He also called for stronger international action against other militant organizations, including ISIS’s regional affiliate and the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM), arguing that terrorist networks in Afghanistan continue to threaten regional and international security.
Pakistan has repeatedly accused the Taliban administration of allowing the TTP to use Afghaniustan territory to launch attacks inside Pakistan. Islamabad has also alleged that members of the Balochistan Liberation Army operate from Afghanistan, claims the Taliban have consistently denied.
The Taliban administration says it does not allow any armed group to use Afghanistan territory against neighboring countries and has repeatedly argued that Pakistan’s security challenges are an internal matter that Islamabad must resolve on its own.
Relations between Pakistan and the Taliban have deteriorated over the past year amid a surge in militant attacks inside Pakistan. Islamabad has carried out military operations and airstrikes near the Afghanistan border, saying they target militants based inside Afghanistan, while Taliban officials have condemned the strikes as violations of Afghanistan’s sovereignty.
The United Nations has repeatedly warned that regional militant groups continue to operate in Afghanistan despite Taliban assurances. UN monitoring reports have said the TTP maintains a presence in Afghanistan, while ISIS-Khorasan remains capable of carrying out attacks inside Afghanistan and across the region. Taliban officials reject accusations that they harbor terrorist groups and insist they are committed to preventing Afghaniustan territory from being used to threaten other countries.
Pakistan’s latest statement at the Security Council comes as the UN continues to urge greater regional cooperation against terrorism while calling on Afghanistan’s authorities to fulfill commitments to prevent cross-border militant activity.
