Islamabad is running out of patience with Afghanistan over rising cross-border terror attacks. Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told the National Assembly that Islamabad will no longer tolerate militants using Afghan soil to target Pakistan.
He stressed the need for a united response against those giving shelter to terrorists in either country. “Enough is enough. Our patience has limits. Those who shelter or help terrorists will face the consequences,” Asif warned. He also recalled that three years ago, when he visited Kabul, the Taliban government asked for 10 billion Pakistani rupees to move Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) fighters away from border areas. Yet, they gave no guarantee that such funding would stop attacks on Pakistan.
His statement comes after a series of deadly assaults on Pakistani troops in tribal regions. The growing violence has raised tensions between Islamabad and Kabul.
Pakistan itself has long faced criticism for backing terror groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, which carried out attacks in India. Both Asif and former Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto have publicly admitted that Pakistan’s past policies fuelled extremism. They now insist the country has learned from those mistakes, but cross-border terrorism continues to test relations with Afghanistan.
