Pakistan strikes back against Iran
Tensions mount as both sides claim to target separatists
PAKISTAN launched a blitz on “terrorist hideouts” in Iran yesterday that killed at least nine people and further raised tensions in the region.
Islamabad’s demonstration of its “unflinching resolve” to defend itself came after Tehran bombed targets in Pakistan on Tuesday.
The neighbours both claim to be targeting separatist militants in the crossborder Balochistan region – which each has accused the other of harbouring.
The dead from yesterday’s strike close to the town of Saravan, near the border, included three women, four children and two men.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry called its attack “a series of highly coordinated and specifically targeted precision military strikes”.
A statement said: “This action was taken in light of credible intelligence of impending large-scale terrorist activities.
“This action is a manifestation of Pakistan’s unflinching resolve to protect and defend its national security against all threats.” Pakistan used killer drones and rockets, plus stand-off weapons – missiles fired from aircraft at a distance, meaning its fighter jets stayed out of Iran’s airspace.
Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister, Anwaar ul Haq Kakar, returned early from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, as the hostilities raised tensions in the Middle East – which has been unsettled by Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza.
Iran’s attack on Tuesday, reported to have killed two children, made Pakistan the third country it had targeted in seven days.
At least four died when Iran fired 11 missiles at alleged Israeli spy bases in Erbil, Iraq. It also hit what it called Islamic State targets in Syria after the January 3 suicide bombings that killed 90 in Iranian city Kerman, which IS claimed.
Militant insurgency in Balochistan has caused longrunning tension between Pakistan and Iran, with attacks killing scores of soldiers, police and civilians in the past five years.