Rocket attack from Afghanistan kills four soldiers: ISPR
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ISLAMABAD: A cross border rocket attack at an army post near Pak-Afghan border in Khyber Agency killed four soldiers and injured others, the military’s media wing reported.
According to the details, the Inter-Services Public Relations said that the rocket was fired by terrorists from Afghanistan on Sunday which resulted in the death of four military men and injured four others.
“According to reports, rounds fired from (the) Afghanistan side by terrorists hit an 8,000-feet-high Pakistani post in Akhandwala Pass,” the military said in a statement.
“Four Pakistan army soldiers embraced martyrdom and four others were injured due to the rocket fire. Pakistani troops befittingly responded and eliminated the group of terrorists,” it added.
This is not the first time that a cross border attack has happened on Pak-Afghan border.
The attack comes at a time when relations between Islamabad and Afghanistan had started deteriorating in the wake of a surge in Taliban attacks inside Afghanistan and statements of the Afghan leadership against Pakistan.
Meanwhile, Pakistan lodged strong protest with Afghanistan over the rocket attack from Afghan side.
"A strong protest was lodged with Afghanistan's Ambassador Jannan Mosazai and he was told that Kabul must take urgent steps to stop such attacks from its territory," Foreign Office sources said.
Pakistan had also summoned the Afghan ambassador last week to protest over a border clash in which three Frontier Constabulary men were killed on August 16 and 17.
Afghanistan’s Ambassador Janan Mosazai was summoned by Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry a day after Pakistani envoy in Kabul Abrar Hussain was summoned by the Afghan foreign ministry over the same incident in which they claim that eight of their border guards had been killed.
“A strong protest was also lodged on cross-border violations from the Afghan side on 16 and 17 August 2015, which resulted in death of three FC personnel and injuries to two others,” a FO statement said.
“The Afghan ambassador was conveyed that, as a matter of policy, Pakistani authorities do not initiate fire and return fire only in self-defence,” it added.
Earlier in July, two soldiers were wounded when Afghan National Army fired at Pakistan Army’s position in Angoor Adda area of South Waziristan Agency.
A rocket-propelled grenade-7 and a few rounds of small arms were fired on the Angoor Adda gate from the Afghan side causing injuries to the soldiers, ISPR had said.
Pakistan's seven tribal districts near the Afghan border are rife with homegrown insurgents and are strongholds of Taliban and Al-Qaeda operatives.
Local militants have fled ongoing military offensives since 2008, taking refuge across the border and attacking Pakistani military checkpoints and civilians from there.
