Vedant Patel urges the Taliban govt in Afghanistan to prevent terror attacks from their soil

WASHINGTON, March 19 (SABAH): The United States’ Department of State’s Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel on Tuesday urged the Taliban government in Afghanistan to prevent terror attacks from their soil while also asking Pakistan to ensure the security of civilians during counterterrorism operations.

A day earlier, Pakistani forces carried out intelligence-based operations (IBOs) in the border regions inside Afghanistan against terrorists launching attacks in Pakistan from Afghan soil following the March 16 attack.

The Mir Ali attack martyred at least seven Pakistan Army soldiers — including a lieutenant colonel and captain — after they gallantly fought with terrorists as they attacked a security forces’ post in the Mir Ali area of North Waziristan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).

“We deeply regret the loss of life and injustices sustained during the attack in Pakistan, and the loss of civilian lives during the strike in Afghanistan,” said Vedant Patel. He said we urge both sides to address any differences.

“We urge the Taliban to ensure that terrorist attacks are not launched from Afghan soil, and we urge Pakistan to exercise restraint and ensure civilians are not harmed in their counterterrorism efforts. And we urge both sides to address any differences,” he added.

Patel said that Washington remains committed to ensuring that Afghanistan never again becomes a “safe haven for terrorists who wish to harm the United States or our partners and allies”.

When asked to elaborate US stance on Pakistani strikes in Afghanistan, the spokesperson said: “Any loss of civilian life is troubling and heartbreaking to us, and so we want to make sure that when some of these operations are being conducted, that every step possible is being taken, that it’s the perpetrators that are being held to account, and that it’s not civilians who are being impacted.”

To a query, the spokesperson said that US was in regular communication with Pakistani leaders to discuss Afghanistan in detail including through the counterterrorism dialogue and other bilateral consultations.

Regarding Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome’s meetings with newly-elected Pakistani leadership, the spokesperson said the “ambassador on March 15th did meet with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to discuss a broad range of bilateral issues – partnering with the Government of Pakistan on regional security; the United States’s support for continued economic reforms with and through the International Monetary Fund; trade and investment, education, climate change, and other private sector led economic growth issues that we continue to engage with our Pakistani partners on. And they discussed a number of, range of other issues as well.”