ISLAMABAD (The Thursday Times) — Pakistan’s Ministry of Information & Broadcasting issued a strongly worded statement condemning this week’s mosque attack in Kohat as “barbaric,” attributing it to what it called “the vilest of Khwarij with roots in Afghanistan,” and directly criticised the Afghan Taliban regime for allegedly sponsoring terrorism even as its spokesperson threatens Pakistan.
“We strongly condemn the barbaric terrorist attack on civilians and Police officials offering Juma prayers in Kohat,” the ministry said in a statement posted on X. “The attack, perpetrated by the vilest of Khwarij with roots in Afghanistan, reminds us that terrorism has no religion and no justification. Those who perpetrate, facilitate or shelter such acts are the worst among humankind.”
The statement followed a vehicle-borne explosive attack at a mosque inside Kohat’s Old Police Lines during Friday prayers, followed by an assault on the compound by gunmen. Casualty figures varied across outlets in the hours after the attack, ranging from 16 to 27 dead, with most Pakistani outlets reporting 21 to 22 killed, including 15 police personnel, and more than 80 wounded. Among the dead was Dr Israel Khan Aurakzai, chief district specialist in paediatrics at Kohat’s Liaqat Memorial Hospital. Ittihadul Mujahideen Pakistan, a group led by Afghanistan-based commander Hafiz Gul Bahadur, claimed responsibility.
The ministry’s statement went well beyond condemning the attack itself, laying out a direct policy case against Afghanistan’s Taliban administration. “Pakistan has repeatedly raised grave concerns over the use of Afghan territory by Fitna al-Khawarij and other terrorist groups to plan and launch terrorist attacks inside Pakistan,” it said. “The presence of terrorist sanctuaries, alongside their recruitment and support infrastructure in Afghanistan, poses a direct threat to Pakistan’s security. These concerns have been conveyed repeatedly to the Afghan Taliban regime and their interlocutors. They must dismantle these networks rather than deflect responsibility.”
The ministry named Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid directly, calling it “reprehensible” that he had “the audacity to threaten Pakistan with a ‘crushing response’ while his regime actively sponsors terrorism in Pakistan.” It said the Afghan Taliban “must address the terrorist ecosystem thriving under their patronage instead of trying to deflect responsibility and malign Pakistan,” adding that such conduct “cannot obscure their counterterrorism obligations under the Doha Agreement or their responsibility to prevent Afghan territory from being used to threaten other countries.”
The statement also addressed Afghanistan’s own response to the attack. Pakistan “has noted the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ condemnation of the ‘Kohat attack’ and its expression of sympathy for the victims’ families,” the ministry said, “while omitting mention of terrorism in the statement.” It added: “Notwithstanding, condemnation must be matched by concrete action. The Afghan Taliban must take credible, verifiable and sustained measures to dismantle terrorist sanctuaries, disrupt radical recruitment and training networks, and prevent terrorist groups from planning, facilitating or launching attacks against Pakistan.”
The ministry said Pakistan “has consistently pursued dialogue and constructive engagement with the Afghan Taliban, but we would not allow pretence of dialogue to shield those who threaten our people,” and asserted that Pakistan has “both the will and the capability to eliminate terrorist threats wherever they are” and would take “all necessary measures, in accordance with international law, to protect its citizens, territory and sovereignty.” It called on the international community to press the Taliban administration “to act decisively and verifiably” before the threat spreads further across the region.
