Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari came out swinging Saturday after the Afghan Taliban sent a wave of drones into Pakistani territory, saying the group had “crossed a red line” by going after civilians.
The Pakistani military said it picked up and shot down several UAVs Friday night before they reached their targets among them military headquarters in Rawalpindi. The interceptions held, but debris still came down. Four civilians were hurt: two children in Quetta, one person in Kohat, one in Rawalpindi.
“The Afghan Taliban launched few rudimentary drones to harass the brave people of Pakistan,” the military said. “The drones did not reach their intended targets.”
This didn’t come out of nowhere. Pakistan had struck what it called extremist hideouts inside Afghanistan on Thursday night. Afghan officials said four civilians died in Kabul. The Taliban then said they’d hit back and apparently tried.
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Zardari, in a post from his office on X, called the strike a grave provocation from what he described as an illegitimate regime. “Pakistan will not tolerate its civilians being targeted. Afghan soil must not be used for terrorism against neighbours. Pakistan will defend its people.”
Airspace around Islamabad was briefly closed during the drone detection, according to security sources. The border region has been unraveling for weeks skirmishes have cut into trade and pushed out residents.
The UN mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) says at least 75 civilians have been killed and 193 injured in the area since February 26. Pakistan insists it only hits militant infrastructure. The Taliban deny sheltering any militants. Neither side is backing down.
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