The Kabul Tribune (KT)— Pakistan on Sunday rejected allegations by the Taliban that Pakistani security forces or intelligence agencies were involved in recent fighting in Afghanistan’s Nuristan province, calling the claims “frivolous, baseless and devoid of any truth.”
Pakistan’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said
there was no evidence to support allegations that Pakistani authorities had
recruited or trained former Afghan security personnel or facilitated the
activities of Islamic State or other militant groups in Afghanistan.
“Not a shred of evidence has been produced to substantiate
Pakistan’s involvement,” the ministry said, adding that there were no
identities, documents, communications, forensic evidence or independent
verification supporting the allegations.
The statement came after the Taliban’s Defense Ministry said
its forces had killed 28 opposition fighters and detained 32 others during
fighting in Kamdesh district of Nuristan, near the Pakistani border.
The Taliban alleged that the fighters had entered
Afghanistan from across the Durand Line with the support and encouragement of
Pakistani intelligence agencies. It also claimed that some of the fighters fled
toward Pakistani military positions after the fighting.
The Taliban further alleged that Pakistani military
personnel and Islamic State members were present among the attackers but
withdrew after fighting began. It said most of those involved were former
members of Afghanistan’s security forces who had been taken to Pakistan,
trained and later sent into Afghanistan.
Pakistan rejected those allegations, including claims that
it had facilitated the activities of Islamic State or other militant groups
operating in Afghanistan.
The Pakistani ministry also dismissed a video circulating on
social media that it said was being used to support the Taliban’s allegations.
It said the footage showed several unarmed individuals who did not appear to be
properly equipped and described the video as appearing to have been staged. The
claim could not be independently verified.
Pakistan has repeatedly accused the Taliban authorities of
allowing militant groups, particularly the Pakistani Taliban, to operate from
Afghan territory and launch attacks into Pakistan. The Taliban has denied
allowing Afghan soil to be used against other countries and has rejected
Islamabad’s accusations.
The dispute follows a statement by the Afghanistan Freedom
Front, an armed opposition group, which said Saturday that its fighters had
attacked Taliban positions in Kamdesh district of Nuristan and Nari district in
neighboring Kunar province. The group claimed it had taken control of areas in
both districts.
The Taliban rejected the claim and said its forces had
suppressed the opposing fighters. The Afghanistan Freedom Front has not
publicly confirmed the Taliban’s reported figures for casualties or detentions.
Pakistan’s information ministry said militant groups
operating inside Afghanistan have been documented in reports by the United Nations
and other international organizations. It called on the Taliban to take what it
described as “credible and verifiable action” against militant groups operating
from Afghan territory.
The competing claims could not immediately be independently
verified, and neither side provided evidence that could conclusively establish
the other’s alleged involvement in the Nuristan fighting.
