Army claims killing Afghan militant accused of involvement in ‘terrorism’ inside Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani security forces have gunned down an Afghan national in the southwestern Balochistan province bordering Afghanistan, the military said on Tuesday, accusing him of involvement in “terrorism.”
Islamabad has frequently accused neighboring Afghanistan of sheltering and supporting militant groups that launch cross-border attacks. Afghan officials deny involvement, insisting Pakistan’s security issues are an internal matter.
A statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing, said the Afghan national was identified as Muhammad Khan Ahmedkhel, a resident of Afghanistan’s Paktika province.
“On Jan. 11, 2025, an Afghan national involved in terrorism inside Pakistan was killed in the Sambaza area of Zhob district of Balochistan,” the statement said. “His body was handed over to the Interim Afghan Government officials on Jan. 20 after necessary procedural formalities.”
The army said the incident provided “irrefutable evidence of Afghan nationals’ involvement” in militant activities in Pakistan, urging Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers to crackdown on fighters using Afghan soil to launch attacks in Pakistan. The statement did not give any evidence or details of terror activities Ahmedkhel was involved in.
The Pakistani Taliban, or the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), frequently target Pakistani forces in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, as well as in Balochistan.