DG ISPR rejects claims of any Pakistan-US deal on drone attacks in Afghanistan

Director-General of the Inter-Services Public Relations, Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, has dismissed reports of any Pakistan-US understanding on drone operations in Afghanistan, terming them “completely baseless.” “Pakistan has no agreement with the United States, and no formal complaint about drones has been received from the Taliban regime,” Lt Gen Chaudhry said while speaking to senior journalists on Monday. He added that the Ministry of Information had repeatedly clarified the matter. “There is no arrangement whatsoever under which drones operate from Pakistan to Afghanistan,” the DG ISPR emphasised. Lt Gen Chaudhry accused the Taliban regime of facilitating terrorists and said Pakistan had made it clear to the Taliban during the Istanbul talks that it was their responsibility to control terrorism and to explain how they would do so. “These were our people — when we launched operations against them, they fled to Afghanistan. Hand them over to us, and we will deal with them under the Constitution and the law,” he said. The DG ISPR said the real challenge lies in the nexus among terrorists, criminal networks, and the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). He alleged that these groups are involved in opium cultivation, earning between Rs1.8 million and Rs2.5 million per acre, a trade that draws in local populations and warlords. He added that the proceeds are shared among the Afghan Taliban, the TTP, and regional warlords.

from Pakistan News, Latest News Pakistan, Pakistan Headline | The Express Tribune https://ift.tt/V6xJlkw