PESHAWAR: The armed forces are closely monitoring the situation along Pakistan’s border with India and are fully prepared to face off any aggression, military spokesman Lt Gen Asim Bajwa told a news briefing here on Tuesday.

The ISPR chief said no extraordinary movement of Indian troops had been observed on Pakistan’s eastern border to warrant further reinforcements.

“We are well-prepared. There is no need for redeployment of troops from our western border with Afghanistan to our eastern border with India,” he told Dawn separately. “We are quite satisfied with our current deployment at the eastern border.”

He said: “We have not seen any extraordinary movement on the other side of our eastern border, except for movement of artillery pieces and reinforcements of some posts along the Line of Control. And for that we have made appropriate arrangements,” he told Dawn.


Several women facilitators of terrorists held, two gangs involved in Christian Colony, Mardan judicial complex attacks busted


“Whatever is the situation on the eastern border, we are keeping an eye on it. We can move our troops at the spur of the moment if the situation so demands. We are watchful and fully prepared,” Gen Bajwa said at the media briefing held after a special operational and security review meeting presided over Army Chief Gen Raheel Sharif at the Corps Headquarters in Peshawar.

The army chief flew back from Germany early in the morning to chair the meeting attended by Lt Gen Hidayatur Rehman and other senior officers.

Gen Bajwa said that security forces had apprehended several women facilitators of terrorists and busted two gangs involved in the attacks on Christian Colony at Warsak Garrison and Judicial Complex in Mardan.

He said that attacks were planned in Afghanistan. He said four facilitators of the Christian Colony attack and three of the Mardan suicide bombing had been arrested.

Two of them were presented before the media.

The ISPR chief said Afghan nationals had brought the attackers to the border and handed them over to local facilitators.

Four suicide bombers had attacked the Christian Colony, near Peshawar, and one struck the Judicial Complex in Mardan on Sept 2, which left 14 people dead and 49 injured.

Gen Bajwa said the facilitators had also confessed to planning suicide attacks on the National Bank of Pakistan and the Police Line in Mardan. Three suicide jackets were recovered in this connection, he added.

He said 14 major acts of terrorism had been foiled in the region, adding that security forces had conducted 1470 intelligence-based and combing operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Fata since July 1. There was a marked improvement in the security situation in the region after these operations, he added.

In reply to a question, he said Gen Raheel had taken up the border management issue with his counterparts at a conference of armed forces chiefs in Germany.

Gen Bajwa said attacks on security forces from across the border and recent terrorist incidents in Pakistan had been discussed with commanders of the Resolute Support Mission and the Afghan government and its army and intelligence agencies.

Under the border management plan, he said, Pakistan was constructing posts along the Afghan border and 20 per cent of the construction had been completed. Army and paramilitary forces had occupied some of the posts, he added.

“Construction of posts will curb illegal cross-border movement to a great extent,” he said, adding that the situation would improve when the Afghan army also built posts on its side.

The ISPR chief claimed that the Rajgal area of Tirah valley in Khyber Agency had been cleared of militants and troops had secured all dominating peaks. Bunkers were being constructed in Rajgal and border had been properly sealed, he added.

Published in Dawn, September 28th, 2016

Opinion

Editorial

Afghan turbulence
Updated 19 Mar, 2024

Afghan turbulence

RELATIONS between the newly formed government and Afghanistan’s de facto Taliban rulers have begun on an...
In disarray
19 Mar, 2024

In disarray

IT is clear that there is some bad blood within the PTI’s ranks. Ever since the PTI lost a key battle over ...
Festering wound
19 Mar, 2024

Festering wound

PROTESTS unfolded once more in Gwadar, this time against the alleged enforced disappearances of two young men, who...
Defining extremism
Updated 18 Mar, 2024

Defining extremism

Redefining extremism may well be the first step to clamping down on advocacy for Palestine.
Climate in focus
18 Mar, 2024

Climate in focus

IN a welcome order by the Supreme Court, the new government has been tasked with providing a report on actions taken...
Growing rabies concern
18 Mar, 2024

Growing rabies concern

DOG-BITE is an old problem in Pakistan. Amid a surfeit of public health challenges, rabies now seems poised to ...