While Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has voiced alarm over the surge in terror attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan following the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan, Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti has gone a step further, directly accusing the interim Afghan government of backing militant groups operating against Pakistan. In a statement reported by national media on Friday, Bugti claimed that groups like the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) are operating freely from Afghan soil, with access to training camps and safe havens.
He asserted that these militants are receiving what he described as “state-level support” in Afghanistan. Bugti revealed that several terrorists neutralized in recent operations were Afghan nationals, reinforcing Islamabad’s longstanding concerns over cross-border militancy.
Bugti called on the Taliban-led administration in Kabul to honour its obligations under the Doha Agreement, which binds Afghanistan not to allow its soil to be used for attacks against any other country.
He stressed that Islamabad has long warned Kabul against providing space to such elements, adding that any further negligence or complicity would be seen as a hostile act with consequences for bilateral relations.
Bugti also underlined that Balochistan continues to face the brunt of attacks carried out by banned outfit Fitna al-Hindustan, which Pakistan accuses of being supported from within Afghanistan and which is also listed as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation by the United States.
Separately, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari also voiced alarm over the deteriorating security situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, warning that terrorist attacks in both provinces have surged since the Taliban took power in Afghanistan.
Speaking to journalists in Karachi on Friday, Bilawal said the post-2021 security shift in Afghanistan has had direct consequences for Pakistan’s border regions. He also alleged that India is openly funding militant groups operating in Pakistan and that these concerns have been raised by Islamabad at multiple international platforms.
Analysts say the Bilawal’s voicing alarm, and the Chief Minister’s blunt warning reflects rising frustration in Pakistan over Kabul’s failure to act decisively against safe havens being exploited by militants involved in cross-border violence.
Bugti’s statement comes amid mounting evidence of Afghan nationals being actively involved in recent terror incidents across Pakistan’s western border regions.
Just yesterday (Thursday), four armed militants attempting to infiltrate from Afghanistan were killed in Bajaur during an intelligence-based operation, while another infiltration attempt was also foiled in the Tirah Valley of Khyber district. The militant killed there was identified as an Afghan national, Junaidullah, son of Dawlat Khan.
Though Bugti’s remarks echo concerns raised since mid-August, they gain added weight in light of a large-scale counterterrorism operation conducted in Sambaza, Zhob, where security forces dismantled a major infiltration attempt. That four-day operation resulted in the elimination of 50 terrorists, a significant number of whom were Afghan nationals.
Similarly, during the Bannu Frontier Corps camp attack earlier this year, three of the militants involved were confirmed to be citizens of Afghanistan. Security officials say this is part of an increasingly visible trend.
A recent intelligence report has confirmed that Afghan nationals were involved in over 70 percent of recent attacks carried out by the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which continues to operate from Afghan territory.
