Pakistan Says Afghan Nationals Involved in 70% of Cross-Border Terrorism Incidents

ISLAMABAD (Terror Monitor) — Pakistan’s Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry has alleged that Afghan nationals were involved in around 70 percent of terrorism-related incidents involving cross-border infiltration into Pakistan over the past two-and-a-half to three years.

Chaudhry made the remarks at a joint press conference in Islamabad alongside Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar, amid renewed criticism from Islamabad over what it says is the use of Afghan territory by terrorist groups to carry out attacks inside Pakistan.

According to Chaudhry, Pakistan has repeatedly raised the issue with Afghan authorities through international and bilateral forums, diplomatic channels, dossiers, negotiations and direct contacts. He said Islamabad had also used friendly countries to convey its concerns to the Afghan Taliban authorities, but claimed that cross-border terrorist activity had continued.

Chaudhry said terrorist groups were entering Pakistan from Afghanistan and carrying out attacks for financial rewards, with the stated objective of destabilising the country. He also referred to a recent attack in which authorities examined photographs of a suspected attacker through Pakistan’s identification systems, including the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA).

According to the minister, the individual could not be identified through domestic records, while information obtained through open-source intelligence indicated that the suspect was a resident of Kabul.

Pakistan has repeatedly accused the Afghan Taliban government of allowing militant groups, particularly the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), to operate from Afghan territory. Kabul has rejected such accusations and has denied allowing Afghan soil to be used for attacks against Pakistan.

Dispute Over Counterterrorism Resources in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Chaudhry also criticised the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government over its counterterrorism capabilities, arguing that provincial authorities had failed to provide sufficient resources and infrastructure to security and law-enforcement agencies.

He claimed that the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) was still not fully operational across the province and argued that security forces could not effectively combat terrorism without adequate resources, equipment and institutional support.

The minister alleged that security forces in the province had not been provided with sufficient vehicles, training or other necessary facilities. He also claimed that Safe City projects had not been established in the province on the scale seen in Punjab and that forensic laboratory facilities remained inadequate.

Chaudhry said Punjab had expanded its Safe City infrastructure down to the tehsil level and argued that the availability of resources, leadership and authority had contributed to the province’s counterterrorism efforts.

He further alleged that attempts had been made to curtail police powers through amendments to the provincial Police Act. These allegations were part of the federal government’s broader criticism of the KP government’s handling of security.

Attaullah Tarar Raises Issue of Unregistered Vehicles

Federal Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, speaking at the same press conference, said unregistered vehicles and motorcycles in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were being used in terrorist activities.

Tarar said the registration and regulation of vehicles and motorcycles fell under the authority of the provincial government, but alleged that sufficient measures had not been taken to address the issue.

He also accused the KP government of diverting resources and funds allocated for counterterrorism toward political purposes. The allegations were not independently substantiated during the press conference.

The federal ministers’ remarks come as Pakistan faces continued attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and renewed tensions with Afghanistan over cross-border militancy.

Pakistan has increasingly linked the security situation in the northwest to militant networks operating from Afghanistan, while the Taliban authorities in Kabul have rejected Islamabad’s allegations and maintained that they do not permit Afghan territory to be used against other countries.

The dispute over cross-border militancy has become one of the most serious issues in Pakistan-Afghanistan relations since the Taliban returned to power in Kabul in August 2021. Islamabad has repeatedly demanded what it describes as verifiable action against militant sanctuaries, while Kabul has called for evidence and rejected accusations that it supports attacks inside Pakistan.