New Delhi: A day after warning Iran of "serious consequences" over its attack on Jaish al-Adl's headquarters in its territory, Pakistan on Thursday carried out strikes against "terrorist hideouts" in Iran.
"This morning Pakistan undertook a series of highly coordinated and specifically targeted precision military strikes against terrorist hideouts in Siestan-o-Baluchistan province of Iran," Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said in an official statement.
The development came a day after Iran carried out a missile and drone strike in Pakistan, an attack that Islamabad claimed killed two children and injured three others in Balochistan.
However, Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, speaking in Davos, insisted that no Pakistani citizens had been targeted, only members of Jaish al-Adl.
"We only targeted Iranian terrorists on the soil of Pakistan," Mr Amir-Abdollahian said.
Here’s what US, China, India said on Iran-Pak airstrikes
The US' State Department has criticised Iran for violating the sovereign borders of three nations in 48 hours. Beijing has taken a more neutral position.
"We call on the two sides to avoid actions that escalate tension, and jointly keep the region peaceful,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told media.
India, meanwhile, has underlined its "zero tolerance" stance towards terrorism, but has also said it understands "actions that countries take in their self-defence".
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “This is a matter between Iran and Pakistan. Insofar as India is concerned, we have an uncompromising zero tolerance towards terrorism. We understand actions that countries take in their self-defence.”
What's Baloch Liberation Front
BLF is striving for an independent Baloch state in Pakistan. Established in 1964, the BLF has engaged in insurgencies against both Iran and Pakistan. Pakistan labels the BLF as a terrorist organization and has conducted multiple military operations against it.
On the other side BLF claims to represent the aspirations of the Baloch people through its Marxist-Leninist and Baloch nationalist ideology.
