ISLAMABAD- June 2 ,2024 : During a recent visit to Afghanistan, Federal Interior Secretary Muhammad Khurram Agha presented a comprehensive report accompanied by documentary evidence to Afghanistan’s Deputy Interior Minister, Muhammad Nabi Omari. The report implicated that the terrorists responsible for the attack on Chinese citizens in Bishaam, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, had traveled from Afghanistan to Quetta before proceeding to Bishaam to execute the attack. The Pakistani side alleged that the Afghan government failed to control these terrorists at the border. The report detailed the movements of the terrorists, suggesting a significant security lapse on the Afghan side. However, the Afghan Deputy Interior Minister, Muhammad Nabi Omari, responded robustly, challenging the Pakistani claims and turning the accusations back on Pakistan. Nabi omari stated that while Afghanistan shares only one border with Pakistan, Pakistan has hundreds of checkposts from Quetta to Bishaam. He questioned why the Pakistani authorities, with their numerous checkpoints and border controls, failed to intercept the terrorists. Omari further accused the Pakistani government of shifting the blame to Afghanistan to cover its own security failures. In a detailed rebuttal, Nabi Omari highlighted systemic issues within Pakistan’s border security and law enforcement. He claimed that there are varying bribe rates for crossing drugs, non-customs paid vehicles, vehicles loaded with weapons, and illegal Iranian oil at each Pakistani checkpoint. According to Nabi omari, the forces stationed at these checkpoints are well aware of these activities but failed to notice the passage of the suicide car involved in the attack. Nabi omari also pointed out that Pakistan has installed barbed wire along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, a measure that Afghanistan has not implemented. Despite this additional security measure, Pakistan continues to struggle with law and order issues, raising questions about the effectiveness of its border control.He noted that Afghanistan is still in the process of establishing itself, whereas Pakistan boasts an organized army, police, Frontier Corps, Frontier Constabulary, Levies Force, Khasadar Force, and various other civil and military setups that have been in existence for 80 years. Despite these extensive resources, Nabi omari argued, Pakistan has failed to maintain peace within its borders, casting doubt on its ability to effectively control the border with Afghanistan. This diplomatic spat underscores the ongoing tension and mistrust between the two neighboring countries, complicating efforts to address cross-border terrorism and regional security concerns. The failed visit has raised serious questions about the efficacy of Pakistan’s border management and its broader strategy for countering terrorism within its borders.
