Pakistan’s Foreign Office said Thursday that its ceasefire understanding with Afghanistan has effectively broken down, citing a surge in cross-border terrorist attacks involving Afghan nationals and groups operating from Afghan soil, according to “The Nation News”.
Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi told reporters in Islamabad that the arrangement was never a conventional ceasefire between two warring states but an understanding that Afghan-based militant groups would halt attacks inside Pakistan.
“The ceasefire did not refer to a traditional cessation of hostilities,” Andrabi said. “It meant there would be no terrorist attacks inside Pakistan by Afghan-sponsored proxies particularly the TTP, FAK, and Afghan nationals using Afghan territory.”
He added that “major terrorist attacks” had taken place since the understanding was reached, including an assault in Islamabad involving an Afghan national. “Given this pattern, Pakistan cannot remain optimistic about the ceasefire holding,” he said.
Andrabi also sharply criticized recent comments by Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who implied that Sindh could one day “return to India.” The spokesperson condemned the remarks as “delusional, dangerously revisionist, and a violation of international law,” saying they disregarded the sanctity of internationally recognized borders.
“Such provocative rhetoric cannot distract from the discrimination faced by vulnerable Indian minorities,” he added, urging New Delhi to address grievances in India’s northeast, where he said marginalized communities face “state-enabled violence and identity-based persecution.”
The spokesperson further cited a new UN report on the situation in Indian-administered Kashmir, highlighting “severe and systematic” human rights abuses, including the arbitrary detention of nearly 2,800 people, among them journalists, students, and activists. Laws such as the Public Safety Act and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, he said, enable “indefinite and unjustifiable detentions.”
Reaffirming Islamabad’s stance, Andrabi said Pakistan remains committed to resolving disputes with India through “justice, equity, and established international legal norms,” and urged India to stop coercive measures and end persecution of religious minorities.
Asked about the risk of further attacks from across the Afghan border, Andrabi said Pakistan’s security forces remain “fully alert” and prepared to respond to any threat. He added that Islamabad welcomes mediation efforts in principle, though no concrete offer, such as from Saudi Arabia, had yet been received.
