ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s foreign office spokesperson on Thursday rejected Iran’s recent statement condemning violent clashes in its northwestern Parachinar town, saying it was “unwarranted” and based on an “incomplete picture” of the situation.
At least 32 people were killed and over 190 injured in clashes that erupted last week in Pakistan’s northwestern Kurram district, particularly its capital Parachinar town.
The Kurram tribal district has witnessed deadly conflicts among tribes and religious groups as well as sectarian clashes and militant attacks over the years. The latest clashes broke out over a property dispute last week and quickly spread to nearby villages and settlements before the warring tribes agreed to a ceasefire on Sunday.
In a statement on Wednesday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Nasser Kanaani condemned the “terrorist attack,” saying it had targeted Shia Muslims in Pakistan. He stressed the need for decisive action against militant groups to protect the lives of the people of Parachinar.
“Such statements about Pakistan’s domestic affairs are therefore unwarranted,” Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, the spokesperson of Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, (MoFA) said during a weekly press briefing.
“While details may be sought from the Ministry of Interior, we believe that these statements are based on an incomplete picture of the situation in Parachinar,” she added.
Baloch said Pakistan values the life, dignity and prosperity of all of its nationals as a multicultural and multifaith society.
“Pakistan is fully determined to foster social harmony, tolerance, and mutual respect,” she said.
Pakistan and Iran have had a history of rocky relations despite several commercial pacts. Their highest profile agreement is a stalled gas supply deal signed in 2010 to build a pipeline from Iran’s Fars gas field to Pakistan’s southern provinces of Balochistan and Sindh.
Pakistan and Iran also find themselves at odds due to the instability along their shared porous border, with their leaders routinely trading blame after militant attacks in their respective territories.
Earlier this year in January, the two countries exchanged airstrikes, with each government claiming to have targeted militant hideouts in the other country. Both states have since made peace overtures and restored bilateral ties through multiple high-level visits.
Pakistan says Iran’s statement on Parachinar clashes ‘unwarranted’
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Pakistan says Iran’s statement on Parachinar clashes ‘unwarranted’
- Warring tribes last week clashed over property dispute in Pakistan’s Kurram district, leaving at least 32 dead, 190 injured
- Pakistan says Iran’s statement condemning violence based on “incomplete picture” of situation in Parachinar town
Pakistan PM heads to UAE for daylong visit, talks with president
- Shehbaz Sharif is undertaking the visit on Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed’s invitation
- The trip comes as Pakistan strives to deepen strategic relation with Gulf nations
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif departed for the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday for a daylong official visit to meet President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and hold talks with the UAE leadership, the Pakistani government said.
The trip comes amid Pakistan’s efforts to deepen strategic and economic ties with Gulf nations, especially the UAE, which has remained a key financial and diplomatic partner.
“Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, accompanied by a delegation, has departed from Islamabad for a one-day official visit to the United Arab Emirates,” his office said in a statement. “He is undertaking the visit on the invitation of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi,” it continued. “The Prime Minister will meet the UAE leadership during the visit.”
The UAE is Pakistan’s third-largest trading partner, home to over a million Pakistani expatriates, and a critical source of investment. It played a key role in helping Pakistan avert a balance-of-payments crisis in recent years by depositing funds in the central bank, which facilitated a bailout deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
According to a statement issued by the foreign office a day earlier, Sharif is expected to follow up on more than $3 billion in cooperation agreements signed during his earlier visit in January 2024.
In a phone call last month, Sharif and the UAE president discussed bilateral ties and regional security following a sharp military escalation between Pakistan and India.
Islamabad praised the UAE’s “constructive diplomatic role” during the crisis.
‘Bellicose punchlines’: Islamabad slams India’s top diplomat over anti-Pakistan remarks in Brussels
- Subrahmanyam Jaishankar accused Pakistan of sponsoring ‘terrorism,’ asserted New Delhi’s right to retaliate
- Foreign office says India should raise the quality of its discourse instead of remaining ‘obsessed with Pakistan’
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday criticized Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar for “producing bellicose punchlines” after he made a series of statements during his visit to Brussels, accusing Islamabad of sponsoring “terrorism” and asserting New Delhi reserved the right to retaliate against militant attacks.
The comments come in the wake of a recent military standoff between the nuclear-armed neighbors, involving the exchange of fighter jets, drones, missiles and artillery fire. Both countries have since launched parallel diplomatic offensives, dispatching delegations to major world capitals to present their versions of events.
New Delhi suspended a longstanding river water-sharing treaty following a gun attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir that it blamed on Pakistan. Islamabad denied any involvement, calling for an impartial international probe before India decided to launch missiles to target what it called was “terrorist infrastructure” in Pakistan.
A US-brokered ceasefire was announced by President Donald Trump on May 10, followed by Pakistan’s call for a “composite dialogue” with its neighboring state which New Delhi has so far resisted.
“Pakistan categorically rejects the irresponsible remarks made by the External Affairs Minister of India during different media engagements in Brussels,” the foreign office said in a strongly worded statement.
“The discourse of top diplomats should aim to promote peace and harmony, rather than producing bellicose punchlines,” it continued. “The tone and tenor of a Foreign Minister should be commensurate with his dignified status.”
The ministry accused India of waging a years-long “malicious campaign” aimed at misleading the global community with a “fictitious narrative of victimhood,” adding that such rhetoric cannot conceal what it described as India’s own “sponsorship of terrorism beyond its borders” or its “state-sanctioned oppression” in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir.
“India must also desist from concocting misleading narratives to justify its recent aggressive actions,” the statement said. “Pakistan believes in peaceful coexistence, dialogue and diplomacy. However, it stands resolute in its intent and ability to safeguard its sovereignty against any aggression, as exemplified by its robust response to India’s reckless strikes last month.”
Calling India’s recent remarks a sign of “sheer frustration” after what it termed an “unsuccessful military adventure,” Islamabad said Indian leaders should focus on improving the quality of their discourse rather than remaining “obsessed with Pakistan.”
“The history will judge not by who shouted the loudest but by who acted the wisest,” it added.
Palestinian MP accuses Israel and India of conspiring together against Pakistan’s sovereignty
- Sheikh Mamoun Asaad Al-Tamimi was speaking at the National Press Club in Islamabad during a ‘Meet the Press’ event
- Says Pakistan’s ‘victory’ in recent military confrontation with India was a success for the entire Muslim ummah
ISLAMABAD: Palestinian lawmaker Sheikh Mamoun Asaad Al-Tamimi on Wednesday accused Israel and India of working in tandem to undermine Pakistan’s sovereignty, alleging that both nations viewed Pakistan’s nuclear capability as a threat to their regional ambitions.
Speaking at the National Press Club in Islamabad during a “Meet the Press” event, Al-Tamimi claimed that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, encouraged by Israeli leadership, had attempted to provoke war with Pakistan.
“Modi and Netanyahu are deeply troubled by Pakistan’s nuclear strength. On Israel’s instigation, Modi tried to impose war on Pakistan but they were met with a response they never anticipated,” he said.
Al-Tamimi was referring to exchanges of drones, missiles, and artillery strikes between the two arch-rivals between May 7-10 before a ceasefire was announced. After India struck first on May 7, Pakistan vowed retaliation, saying it had downed six Indian fighter jets.
The two nations also hit each other’s military bases, airfields and other army facilities with missiles.
The Palestinian MP said Israel expected Pakistan’s leadership to be divided and weak in the face of Indian airstrikes.
“But Pakistan’s military and political leadership responded with unity and strength. This is not just a Pakistani victory, it is a victory for the entire Muslim ummah,” he said.
Al-Tamimi’s remarks come amid ongoing violence in Gaza, which he described as a humanitarian catastrophe.
Israel launched an air and ground offensive in Gaza in October 2023 in which at least 54,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to health authorities in the coastal enclave.
“Israel has placed Gaza under siege ... There is now an acute shortage of food and medicine. If the blockade continues, two million Palestinians could die of hunger within a year,” Al-Tamimi warned.
He also drew parallels between the struggles in Gaza and disputed Kashmir, claiming both were victims of occupation and global neglect.
“The war in Gaza has unmasked everyone. Western media portrays Israel as a victim, but this war has exposed the truth. The silence of the international community is deafening.”
Calling for global protests, Al-Tamimi urged people, particularly in Pakistan, to demonstrate outside US embassies in solidarity with the people of Gaza:
“The world must pressure Israel to end its brutal campaign.”
During the press meet visit, NPC President Azhar Jatoi recalled the club’s early support for Gaza, including rallies and awards for over 150 journalists who highlighted the Palestinian cause. Secretary Nayyar Ali added that Pakistani journalists would continue speaking up for Gaza on all platforms.
Pakistan defends 20 percent defense budget hike, cites need to counter India’s ‘war craze’
- Pakistan’s FY2025–26 budget has allocated Rs2.1 trillion ($7.5 billion) to defense, up from Rs1.8 trillion last year
- Increase comes weeks after brief but intense military flare-up in May with India, triggered by a militant attack
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday defended its decision to raise defense spending by 20 percent in the new fiscal year, citing the need to strengthen missile defenses and counter what it described as a permanent state of hostility from India following the latest military standoff between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.
The remarks came during a press conference in London, where a high-level Pakistani delegation led by former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is lobbying Western governments to support Pakistan’s position on Kashmir, regional stability, and water security. The delegation includes senior lawmakers, including Khurram Dastgir Khan, a former defense minister and ruling Pakistan Muslim League party member.
Pakistan’s FY2025–26 budget has allocated Rs2.1 trillion ($7.5 billion) to defense, up from Rs1.8 trillion last year. The increase comes weeks after a brief but intense military flare-up with India in May, triggered by a militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that New Delhi blamed on Islamabad, which denies the allegations.
Responding to questions about the sharp rise in defense allocations in Pakistan’s 2025–26 federal budget announced on Tuesday, Dastgir said the increase was proportional and necessary given the country’s limited resources and regional threat perception.
“Pakistan has proven that they [India] spend 10 times more than us every year. We are $7.5 billion. Probably last year they spent $77 billion on their defense in a year,” the Pakistani lawmaker said.
“Despite that, we have seen that the skill of Pakistan and the equipment that Pakistan has, by using it well, we have defeated our 10 times bigger enemy. It has forced it to retreat.”
Dastagir was referring to exchanges of drones, missiles, and artillery between the two archenemies between May 7-10 before a ceasefire was announced. After India struck first on May 7, Pakistan vowed retaliation, saying it had downed six Indian fighter jets.
The two nations also struck each other’s military bases, airfields and other army facilities.
India, which allocated roughly $77 billion to defense in 2024 according to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute data, has called the May clashes a result of cross-border militant activity, a charge Islamabad denies.
Dastgir argued that Pakistan’s defense posture remained reactive and restrained.
“There will be more discussion on this, on the permanent war-craze from India that is being imposed on us,” he said.
He emphasized that Pakistan must optimize its constrained budget to reinforce deterrence.
“We have to make the best use of our limited resources. One thing is clear — that we have to strengthen our grounded defenses against the Indian missiles,” Dastagir added.
“So, by looking at the economy of Pakistan, we will make the best use of this budget. And the strength of Pakistan will be further enhanced and renewed.”
The comments reflect Islamabad’s effort to reframe its increased defense spending as a measured response to external threats, rather than a departure from regional stability commitments. The government has also pledged to continue talks under the aegis of international partners to avoid escalation.
The Pakistani delegation is expected to continue its tour with visits to Brussels where it will once more present Islamabad’s case for de-escalation, resumption of water treaty obligations, and progress on the decades-old Kashmir dispute.
Trump nominee for South Asia secretary backs Pakistan security cooperation ‘where beneficial for US’
Trump nominee for South Asia secretary backs Pakistan security cooperation ‘where beneficial for US’
- Paul Kapur says will continue to promote “longstanding US security interests with India and Pakistan”
- Kapur is professor at the US Naval Postgraduate School, visiting faculty member at Hoover Institution
ISLAMABAD: Paul Kapur, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be assistant secretary of state for South Asian affairs, said this week he would pursue security cooperation with Pakistan “where beneficial to US interests.”
Kapur was speaking during a confirmation hearing before the US Senate on Tuesday.
“On Pakistan, if confirmed, I will pursue security cooperation where beneficial to US interests, while seeking opportunities for bilateral collaboration in trade and investment,” Kapur said in his testimony.
“South Asia recently avoided a costly conflict, with the [US] Vice President and Secretary [of State Marco] Rubio intensely engaged on the issue. If confirmed, I will continue to promote longstanding US security interests with India and Pakistan through the pursuit of peace and stability, and the fight against terrorism.”
Kapur is, as of 2025, a professor at the US Naval Postgraduate School. He is a visiting faculty member at the Hoover Institution and has taught at Claremont McKenna College. He was also a visiting professor at Stanford University.
In 2025, Kapur was nominated as the Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs by the second Trump administration, succeeding Donald Lu.
Pakistani observers are carefully watching Kapur’s appointment as he wrote in his book ‘Jihad as Grand Strategy’ that jihad was a major part of Pakistan’s grand strategy, and not just a “political instrument” it used. He has claimed that the utilization of jihad by Pakistan is an intentional government strategy.
