This has dawned as a bitter reality on the Taliban regime that taking Pakistan for granted on account of terrorism was a fatal folly. Pakistan is striking the terrorist camps on Afghan soil at a time when all regional players and UNSC reports are showing that Afghanistan has become a hub of international terrorist organisations under the Taliban regime.
Operation Ghazab Lil Haq (Righteous Fury) is sending a firm message that the state of Pakistan has intensified a targeted campaign against the banned terrorist group TTP and all its backers present in Afghanistan. The world has to realise that the ongoing war of Pakistan against Afghanistan-based terrorist groups is in the larger interest of all those regional and global players who consider terrorism as a menace. As of now, Pakistan’s stance regarding strikes in Afghanistan is that they are “limited, proportionate, and precise” counter-terrorism measures taken in self-defence.
Islamabad maintains that these operations under Operation Ghazab-lil-Haq are a last resort necessitated by the Afghan Taliban’s failure to prevent the use of their soil for attacks against Pakistan. This is obviously a decisive moment in the counter-terrorism history of the country and shows firm strategic resolve of the state regarding the termination of cross-border terrorism emanating from Afghanistan.
While the Taliban regime has alleged that strikes hit civilian facilities such as a drug rehabilitation centre in Kabul, Pakistan has dismissed these assertions as “malicious narratives” used to cover terrorist sanctuaries.
This heightened resolve was evidenced in the Pak-Afghan border areas, where anti-tank guided missiles were used to dismantle the positions involved in facilitating the terrorists’ infiltration. This followed a series of precision airstrikes targeting Afghan Taliban-linked assets in Kabul and Nangarhar, which successfully destroyed critical military and ammunition infrastructure. Information Minister Ataullah Tarar has affirmed that these operations will persist until all “desired objectives are fully achieved.”
Government officials highlighted the destruction of technical support hubs and storage facilities at two specific locations in Kabul, noting that “visible secondary detonations” confirmed the presence of significant ammunition stockpiles. The stance of the government officials is explicit that the offensive was a direct effort to dismantle the terrorist infrastructure responsible for attacks against Pakistani civilians. Fabricated false claims have emerged from Afghanistan regarding recent Pakistani strikes, especially from the Taliban side, complaining of civilian casualties in Kabul.
While rejecting such baseless claims, Pakistan is firmly maintaining that all strikes were precise and targeted only terrorists. As usual, the Taliban’s claims lack independent verification; the strikes-including the reported destruction of a key technical tunnel in Kandahar-represent both a tactical action and a strategic warning from Pakistan to Taliban leadership.
Pakistan continues to demand that the interim Afghan government fulfil its international obligations under the Doha agreement to ensure Afghan soil is not used against other nations. Pakistan asserts its sovereign right to protect its citizens and security forces from “imminent terrorist attacks”. Recent strikes are framed as retribution for high-casualty incidents, such as suicide bombings at a Shia mosque in Islamabad and military posts in Bajaur. Pakistan officially refers to the banned TTP as “Fitna-al-Khawarij” to emphasise their deviation from Islamic principles. Strikes specifically target their training camps, weapons depots, and technical infrastructure in areas like Kabul, Kandahar, and Paktika.
While the Taliban regime has alleged that strikes hit civilian facilities such as a drug rehabilitation centre in Kabul, Pakistan has dismissed these assertions as “malicious narratives” used to cover terrorist sanctuaries. Islamabad has informed regional partners that diplomatic efforts have been “exhausted” due to the persistent refusal from the Taliban to dismantle TTP infrastructure or hand over its leadership.
The Afghan population remains the primary victim of the Taliban regime, with the country increasingly serving as a hub for global terrorist factions and undermining regional stability.
Pakistan maintains that the Taliban must dismantle the TTP and other militants, insisting that long-term peace depends on verifiable security commitments and regional cooperation rather than just tactical strikes. This remains an undeniable fact that Afghanistan has become a can of terrorist worms, and Pakistan is keeping the lid tight to avert the spillover.
The writer is a student.