ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has protested to Afghanistan’s Taliban government over the killing of 25 soldiers in an attack on a military base, demanding action against the perpetrators, Islamabad said as it grapples with security challenges ahead of elections next year.
Tuesday’s gun and bomb attack claimed by an militant group comes amid concerns voiced by political analysts about general elections set for Feb. 8, amid a surge in such attacks in the nation of 241 million.
Pakistan’s foreign office summoned Kabul’s envoy over the attack, it said in a statement on Tuesday, asking for the Taliban administration to “fully investigate and take stern action against the perpetrators of the recent attack”.
It also sought a public condemnation of the incident, which led to the heaviest death toll in a single attack in years.
The United States condemned the attack.
“We stand with the people of Pakistan in ensuring the perpetrators are brought to justice,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a post on social media platform X that offered condolences to the bereaved.