Da’ish militants: Afghans did not raise cross-border incursions: army

Maj-Gen Mohammad Habib Hesari urged Pakistan to stop Da’ish terrorists from crossing the border

ISLAMABAD: The army on Wednesday disputed the claims made by Afghan defence officials that they (the Afghan side) had raised the issue of alleged incursion of Da’ish militants into Afghanistan from Pakistan.

An Afghan defence ministry statement quoted Maj-Gen Mohammad Habib Hesari, the Afghan Director General Military Operations, as urging Pakistan to “stop Da’ish terrorists from crossing the border into Afghanistan” during the trilateral meeting in Kabul on Tuesday.

Pakistani military sources said that “Da’ish came under discussions in the context of a threat in the region, but (the) Afghan defence officials did not mention Da’ish militants entering Afghanistan from Pakistan”. The military sources privy to the meeting in Kabul; however, confirmed to The Express Tribune that the Afghan side had taken up the issue of construction of a border security gate at Torkham which Pakistani military officials had defended, saying the border management was necessary to curb illegal cross-border movement.

"Pakistani officials also made it clear that the construction of a gate at Torkham is on the Pakistani territory and is aimed at to facilitate the Afghans who will enter Pakistan on legal documents."

The Express Tribune has learnt that US officials have also thrown their weight behind Pakistan’s move to put in place an effective mechanism along the border with Afghanistan because militants would take advantage of loose border control.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 28^th, 2016.