Pakistan rejects ICC’s “unverified” claim on Afghan cricketers’ deaths
“Pakistan, a primary victim of cross-border terrorism, rejects the ICC's selective and biased comment alleging that three Afghan cricketers died in an airstrike,” said Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ataullah Tarar in a post on X.
“The ICC has provided no independent verification to support these claims,” the minister added. “Pakistan strongly disputes this characterization, contests the ICC’s claim, and calls for an immediate correction.”
Tarar also highlighted a concerning pattern of amplification without any effort to gather evidence. “Within hours of the ICC release, its Chair, Jay Shah, publicly repeated the claim on X, and the Afghanistan Cricket Board subsequently issued a statement citing the ICC’s allegation instead of providing details or proof,” he noted.
He described this sequence as an attempt to create an artificial echo chamber.
“This incident follows a pattern of avoidable controversies under the ICC’s current leadership, which have disproportionately targeted Pakistan cricket, including the recent ‘handshake controversy’ that delayed Pakistan's Asia Cup fixture,” the minister said.
Expressing concerns over the erosion of confidence in the ICC’s neutrality, Tarar emphasized that a global cricket regulator must not appear to push any biased narrative, nor allow match-management controversies to recur.
“Pakistan has consistently maintained that politics must not interfere with sport, particularly cricket, and urges the ICC to uphold its independence and preserve the spirit of the game,” he concluded.
Tarar warned that the ICC should abstain from definitive attributions, avoid certifying unverified claims on the behest of others, refrain from allowing certain actors to draw political mileage, and uphold even-handed standards irrespective of the nationality of office-bearers.
"Pakistan expects the ICC, led by its current Chair, who happens to belong to India, to restore its neutrality, international standards of fair play and unbiased conduct and address the potential precedent, perhaps a global first, that embroils a sport regulator in narratives linked to violent extremists.”
Precision strikes
Tarar on Saturday confirmed that Pakistan last night conducted "precision strikes" on verified camps of the proscribed Gul Bahadur group in the border areas of North and South Waziristan districts.
"In these precision strikes, [a] minimum [of] 60-70 Kharjis [terrorists] and their leadership have been sent to hell based on confirmed intelligence reports," the federal minister wrote on X.
The two neighbouring nations are witnessing heightened tensions amid the Afghan Taliban regime's reluctance to act against terrorist groups operating from Afghan soil, in the backdrop of rising terror attacks in Pakistan.
The Taliban forces and India-backed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), alias Fitna al-Khawarij, resorted to an unprovoked attack on Pakistan on October 12.
The Pakistan Armed Forces gave a befitting response to the aggression, killing over 200 Afghan Taliban and affiliated militants in a self-defence action. The military's media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said that 23 soldiers embraced martyrdom in the clashes with the Taliban forces and the terrorists.
A temporary truce between the neighbours which Pakistan agreed to at the request of Afghanistan on October 15 paused days of fierce fighting that killed dozens and wounded hundreds.
However, Tarar in today's post noted that during the 48-hour ceasefire, militants affiliated with the Khawarij group and operating from Afghanistan attempted multiple terrorist attacks inside Pakistan.
He said all such attempts were effectively thwarted by the country’s security forces.
Meanwhile, he said, the security forces responded effectively, eliminating over 100 militants affiliated with the Khawarij group.
No civilian casualties
The information minister stated that militants from the ex-Gul Bahadur faction of the Khawarij group carried out a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (IED) attack in North Waziristan.
"The attack resulted in the martyrdom of a soldier and multiple civilians, while several others were injured," he added.
He also refuted allegations of civilian casualties as "baseless", noting that they appear to be part of a deliberate effort to garner sympathy for terrorist groups operating from within Afghanistan.
Ceasefire reached
However, later on Saturday night, Qatar announced that Pakistan and Afghanistan had reached a landmark ceasefire agreement, marking a potential breakthrough in efforts to restore peace and stability along their troubled border.
The ceasefire agreement is expected to lay a strong foundation for lasting peace in the region, according to the Qatari officials.
Both countries have also agreed to hold further meetings in the coming days and to establish a permanent mechanism to ensure peace and stability between them.
Confirming the agreement, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif expressed hope that the ceasefire would end border tensions between the two countries.
from Latest Pakistan News - SUCH TV https://ift.tt/D63bymG
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