The US State Department asked the Afghan Taliban on Tuesday to make sure that terrorist attacks are not launched from their territory, supporting Pakistan’s counterterrorism efforts.

US pressures Taliban to act against Terrorist groups

In answer to a question about his thoughts on a recent terrorist incident that resulted in the martyrdom of seven people, two members of the security forces and five civilians, including children, State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller made this statement. The militants, who, once more, come from the “safe haven in Afghanistan,” killed the security men during an hours-long gunfight. “On the night between July 15 and 16, the terrorists carried out a cowardly attack on the Rural Health Center (RHC), Kirri Shamozai in the Dera Ismail Khan District and opened indiscriminate fire on RHC staff,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) reports. Miller stated, “We do continue to urge the Taliban to ensure that terrorist attacks are not launched from Afghan soil,” during a news briefing. According to the spokeswoman, the US has prioritized and still prioritizes these relations. It is important to note that in the early hours of July 15, eight troops lost their lives attempting to stop terrorists from infiltrating Bannu Cantonment, making this the second terrorist strike in as many days. According to the ISPR, after the ten terrorists’ attempt to breach the cantonment failed, they drove an explosive-laden car into the cantonment’s outer wall, killing all of them.

Taliban faces ultimatum on terrorist activity

The strikes occur while Islamabad has repeatedly urged the Afghan Taliban government in Kabul to stop different outlaw organizations from using its territory as a base for terrorist attacks against Pakistan. According to a Security Studies (CRSS) Annual Security report, the nation saw 380 violence-related deaths and 220 injuries in the second quarter of 2024 among citizens, security forces, and criminals as a result of up to 240 episodes of terror attacks and counter-terror operations. In the meantime, Major General Pat Ryder, the press secretary for the Pentagon, sent his sympathies to the families of the fallen servicemen. During a news conference, Ryder responded to a question by saying, “Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of those soldiers that were lost.” “Pakistan has challenges in its war against terrorists in the area at times. 

Therefore, I’m upset to hear that. He went on to say that Pakistan and the US had previously collaborated and that “we continue to discuss ways that we can work together.” The spokeswoman replied, “I don’t have anything to announce,” in response to a follow-up question concerning Pakistan’s need for contemporary American weapons to handle the issue. “We do have a relationship with Pakistan based on security cooperation. Therefore, I’m — I’m confident that those conversations are taking place via those channels to examine Pakistan’s needs and what the United States can do to assist,” he said.

Afghanistan’s terrorist havens under US scrutiny

Hours after Islamabad claimed to have launched airstrikes on terrorists connected to Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in the neighboring nation, the US asked Pakistan to temper its counterterrorism effort in Afghanistan. Karine Jean-Pierre, the press secretary for the White House, stated during a news conference on Monday that the US also impels the Taliban, who control Afghanistan, to make sure that Afghan territory is not utilized to carry out terrorist strikes. The TTP’s Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group, which claimed responsibility for the attack on Saturday at an army outpost that claimed the lives of seven troops, including two officers, was believed to have targeted rebels, according to Pakistan’s Foreign Office (FO). 

The Afghan Taliban claimed that at least eight civilians, three of them were children, had died in Pakistani airstrikes and called for a stiff protest from the charge d’affaires of Pakistan’s mission in Kabul. On March 15, US Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome met with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to discuss a wide range of bilateral issues. These included US support for ongoing economic reforms with and through the International Monetary Fund, trade and investment, education, climate change, and other issues pertaining to private sector-led economic growth, as well as US collaboration with the Pakistani government on regional security.

Will Taliban heed US warnings on terrorist crackdown?

The United States (US) continues to engage with our Pakistani partners on a variety of issues, including trade and investment, education, climate change, and other private sector-led economic growth initiatives. The US also supports ongoing economic reforms with and through the International Monetary Fund.