Tension as nine killed in Pakistani retaliatory strikes on Iran
Pakistani drone and missile strikes on Iran killed at least nine people, days after Tehran bombed a separatist militant group in Pakistan.
The retaliatory strikes hit Iran’s province of Sistan and Baluchestan.
The region borders Pakistan’s Balochistan province, where Tehran’s forces had carried out a drone and missile attack on Tuesday night.
Iran’s state-run Islamic Republic News Agency said blasts were heard around the city of Saravan on Thursday.
Four children, three women and two men were killed in the Pakistani strikes, provincial deputy governor Ali Reza Marhamati said.
All the victims were foreign citizens living in border villages, he added.
Halvash, a Baluch advocacy group in Iran, said the strikes destroyed the homes of two senior commanders of the Baloch Liberation Army. It said women and children were trapped under the debris.
The Pakistani army confirmed it had conducted drone and missile strikes on “terrorist separatist groups” in Iran and said it was “necessary to respond in kind”, in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
“We note and warn that whoever extends his finger towards us, it will return amputated, and whoever thinks of attacking us will return defeated,” it said.
The post also hinted at further action, saying: “Our fingers are on the trigger.”
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said several people were killed in a series of “highly co-ordinated and specifically targeted” strikes against “terrorist hideouts” in Sistan and Baluchestan.
The ministry said Pakistan “fully respects” Iran’s sovereignty but hit out at Tehran for a “lack of action” on intelligence shared by Islamabad in recent years.
“The sole objective of today’s act was in pursuit of Pakistan’s own security and national interest, which is paramount and cannot be compromised,” it said.
The Baloch Liberation Army confirmed that strikes
had caused deaths and warned that Pakistan would “pay a price”.
Iran condemned the attack and asked for an “immediate explanation” from Islamabad, summoning the Pakistani envoy to Tehran.
Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister Anwar Ul Haq Kakar cut short his trip to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, as the situation escalated.
Pakistan had criticised Iran’s strikes in its Balochistan province as “completely unacceptable” and warned of “serious consequences”.
It recalled its envoy from Tehran on Wednesday and blocked the Iranian ambassador, on a visit home, from returning to Pakistan.
Iranian news agencies said the “missile and drone” attack hit the headquarters in Pakistan of Jaish Al Adl, a Baluch militant group.
Mehr news agency described the attack as “another decisive step taken by Iran in response to the aggression against the security of our country”.
A Pakistani security official told The National that Iran’s strike convinced Pakistani authorities to respond in the same manner.
“Soon after the Iranian strike that challenged Pakistan’s sovereignty, a response had to be given to Iran because we can’t compromise on such incidents,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Baluch separatist groups have carried out a low-level insurgency for more than two decades and have attacked members of the security forces in Iran and Pakistan.
Speaking to The National, former inspector general of police Syed Akhtar Ali Shah said that Pakistan should accept mediation with Iran and called on it to avoid getting dragged into regional tension caused by the war in the Gaza Strip.
“I believe that China and other friendly countries should mediate between Pakistan and Iran and resolve the issues through diplomatic channels,” he said.
Iran’s strikes in Pakistan came a day after it fired missiles into Syria and Iraq amid growing fears that the conflict in Gaza could spread to the wider region.
The attack killed several civilians, including an 11-month-old baby.