ISLAMABAD: After Afghanistan claimed that an hours-long attack on a university in Kabul was orchestrated from Pakistan, the army carried out a combing operation to verify the presence of terrorists in areas straddling the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
At least 16 people, including eight students, were killed and 53 were injured after militants stormed the American University of Afghanistan in Kabul on Wednesday evening sparking a 10-hour long gun battle on campus. While no group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack, Afghan security forces said that it was orchestrated from the other side of the Durand Line.
On Thursday, Army chief General Raheel Sharif and Afghan President Ashraf spoke via telephone. During the conversation, information about the suspected attackers involved in the attack from ‘the other side the Durand line’ was shared.
“During the conversation, the Army chief strongly condemned terrorists’ attack on American University of Afghanistan in Kabul yesterday and expressed his sympathies with the bereaved families,” read a statement from the military’s media wing, the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR).
“Pakistani soil would not be allowed to be used for any type of terrorism in Afghanistan,” Gen Raheel said.
The military confirmed that Afghanistan had shared three mobile numbers which were allegedly used by the terrorists during the attack.
“Based on these three Afghan cell numbers provided by Afghan authorities, Pakistan Army carried out a combing operation in the suspected area close to Pak-Afghan border to verify presence of miscreants,” the statement said without elaborating on the specific areas where these operations were conducted.
Gen Raheel told Ghani that based on the information provided and the search operations showed that the SIMs used to orchestrate the attack used an Afghan telecommunications network whose signals spilled over into some areas along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
“Outcome of the [combing] operation so far has been shared with Afghan authorities. Further technical evaluation of the cell numbers (all Afghan) is being carried out,” the statement added.
The army chief also assured the Afghan president of “all out cooperation on availability of further information from Afghanistan”.
Earlier during the day, Ghani had called Gen Raheel during an extraordinary session of Afghanistan’s National Security Council and asked him for “serious and practical measures against the terrorists, organising the attack”.
“General Sharif promised that Pakistan will evaluate the case and brief Afghanistan on the taken measures,” a statement from the Afghan Presidential Palace said.
Gunmen had stormed the private university just after dusk on Wednesday evening, a time when it is packed with students – many of them working professionals doing part-time courses.
“Students were pushing each other out of the classroom window,” Farzana, a young student who managed to flee told AFP. “I was reluctant to jump but a fellow student pushed me and I fell down. The rest I don’t remember.”
Hundreds of trapped students were rescued during the overnight operation, many of whom tweeted desperate messages for help. Some used classroom furniture to barricade the doors while others made a mad scramble to escape through windows.
Nato military advisers helped Afghan forces to respond to the attack, a US official said, without specifying how many troops were involved.
At dawn, after the assault had ended, a few women students, some of them terrified and weeping, were escorted out of the campus by policemen.
The attack was reminiscent of a similar attack on the Bacha Khan University in Charsadda on January 20, 2016, that left at least 21 people dead.
Olson, Gen Nicholson call on COAS
Earlier during the day, US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan (SRAP) Ambassador Richard Olson and Commander Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan General John Nicholson along with their delegation called on the Army chief at the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi.
“Regional security issues and matters of mutual interest including border management mechanism along Pakistan-Afghanistan border were discussed,” said a statement issued by the ISPR. “The visiting dignitaries appreciated the resolve and continuing efforts towards fighting terrorism and regional stability.”http://tribune.com.pk/story/1170179/army-combs-areas-near-pak-afghan-border/
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