THE head of the Afghan diplomatic mission in Pakistan was summoned on Tuesday by the Foreign Office (FO) and conveyed four demands including extradition of Hafiz Gul Bahadur, whose group carried out the recent terrorist attack in Bannu. Two civilians lost their lives while 10 others, including three security forces personnel, were injured in a suicide attack in Bannu’s Bakka Khel area. A motorcycle-borne suicide bomber, affiliated with Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group and later identified as an Afghan national, targeted a security forces convoy.
There is clear evidence that the latest surge in terrorist incidents in Pakistan is the outcome of deep collusion between the TTP and the Afghan intelligence agency. It is also a matter of serious concern that Afghan nationals were found to be involved in almost all such incidents but the Taliban Government is still not ready to address concerns of Pakistan despite loss of precious lives in these incidents. As this was the 16th incident of terrorism involving Afghan nationals, Pakistan has demanded that the Taliban investigate the Bannu attack and take stern action against perpetrators of the crime and its abettors. Pakistan also demanded immediate “verifiable actions” against all terrorist groups and their sanctuaries; arrest of Hafiz Gul Bahadur and his hand over to Pakistan; and verifiable action to prevent use of Afghan soil against Pakistan. There are also reports that the Taliban regime is giving free hand to the TTP to plan and execute terrorist activities against Pakistan as part of the strategy to pressurize Islamabad on the issue of repatriation of illegal immigrants including Afghan nationals. However, the Government of Pakistan has taken a principled position to continue with the deportation process because of illegal activities of these nationals both within Pakistan and abroad, bringing bad name to the country. Pakistani demands are legitimate and improvement in bilateral relations is deeply linked to the willingness of Kabul to address Islamabad’s concerns.
