Kabul (March 26, 2024, Kubha News): The Taliban Foreign Ministry, in a statement, expressed regret over today’s attack on Chinese engineers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and expressed solidarity with Beijing and Islamabad.
Five Chinese engineers and one Pakistani driver were killed in a bomb explosion in the Shangla area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa today.
The target of this attack was apparently the Chinese engineers, but Pakistani media have only reported the deaths of “Chinese citizens” as engineers.
In a press release from the Taliban Foreign Ministry, it is stated: “Such attacks are carried out with the aim of undermining regional cooperation, and regional countries must prevent such attacks in order to promote positive regional cooperation.”
The Chinese Embassy in Pakistan stated in a press release that the target of the attack was indeed Chinese engineers.
The Chinese Embassy stated that it has held discussions with the Pakistani government on an emergency security plan following the attack.
The Chinese Embassy in Pakistan has instructed its citizens to take necessary precautions against potential security incidents.
Meanwhile, Mahmoud Khorasani, a spokesperson for the Pakistani Taliban (TTP), denied responsibility for this attack in contact with Pakistani media.
So far, no armed group has claimed responsibility for this attack, but this is the third attack on Chinese targets in recent times.
Abdul Rahim Muslim Dost, a former ISIS preacher who now supports the Taliban government, reacted to this attack on his Facebook page, saying that this attack on the Chinese is part of Pakistan’s efforts to pressure China to withdraw from political engagement and investment in projects such as the Wakhan Corridor with Afghanistan.
Simultaneously, the Pakistan Army’s Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) strongly condemned the recent attacks in Gwadar, Turbat, and Besham, calling it an attempt to undermine internal security in Pakistan.
Pakistan’s military in its statement said that the attackers in Gwadar and Turbat were thwarted in the initial moments, but as a result of the attack on the vehicle carrying the Chinese in Besham, six people, including five Chinese citizens, lost their lives.
The statement also said that foreign elements are involved in supporting terrorism in Pakistan.