QUETTA: Six Pakistani civilians embraced martyrdom while many others sustained injuries due to the unprovoked and indiscriminate firing by Afghan border forces on Sunday, the military said in a statement.
According to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the firing by Afghan forces on the civilian population in Chaman included heavy weapons including artillery and mortars.
It said that the firing caused the martyrdom of six civilians while 17 other individuals sustained injuries. “Pakistani border troops have given befitting albeit measured response against the uncalled for aggression, but avoided targeting innocent civilians in the area,” it added.
The military’s media wing further said that Pakistan has also approached the Afghan authorities in Kabul to highlight severity of the situation and demanded strict action to obviate any such recurrence of the incident in future.
The Afghan rockets landed in Killi Sheikh Lal Muhammad in the Pakistani territory at the border, a senior administration official confirmed to The Express Tribune on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.
“We were sitting inside the house when a rocket landed near our house,” Nizamuddin, a resident of the area said and added that one of his cousins was martyred in the attack.
The Medical Superintendent of Civil Hospital Chaman said that they have received six dead bodies at the hospital, adding that 30 injured were also brought to the hospital for medical treatment.
An emergency was declared in the hospital to provide medical treatment to the injured of the attack. However, seriously injured people were rushed to Civil Hospital Quetta for medical treatment.
“We have received seven injured,” Waseem Baig, the spokesman for the hospital told The Express Tribune. He said that the hospital has also received two dead bodies.
Condemning the incident, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah expressed his concerns over the unprovoked firing by the Afghan forces.
He said that details are being gathered regarding the tragic incident, adding that the use of heavy weapons by Afghan forces was concerning.
The interior minister requested the Balochistan government to provide full assistance to the affected citizens. He prayed for the early recovery of the injured citizens.
The Chaman border – also known as Friendship Gate –connects Balochistan province to Afghanistan’s Kandahar.
It was closed last month after an armed Afghan reportedly crossed onto Pakistan’s side of the border and opened fire on security troops, martyring a soldier and injuring another two.
The Taliban-led government in Afghanistan termed the event ‘sad’ and reportedly assigned a high-level delegation to probe the incident and find the perpetrator.
Later that month, eight people, including two children and three FC personnel, were injured in Kurram district as Afghans from across the border opened fire on them over a dispute over the construction of a road.
According to reports, Afghans crossed the border into the Kharlachi area of Kurram district and “illegally” tried to build a road. The locals there tried to stop them from building a road on their farmlands.
This led to an exchange of fire and unrest in the area. The Afghans fired mortar shells inside Kharlachi, Borki and other localities of the area, injuring eight people, including two children and three FC personnel.
Chief Minister Balochistan Mir Quddus Bizenjo strongly condemned the attack. In a statement, he directed the administration to protect the civilians.
He instructed the health department to make sure provision of better health facilities to the injured.__Tribune.com
