Pakistan: Strikes against terrorists' hideouts in Iran not aggression

ISLAMABAD, Jan 18 (KUNA) -- Pakistan Foreign Office on Thursday said that the country has no intention of escalating the situation with Iran after Pakistan military to carry out effective strikes against hideouts inside Iran used by terrorists.
At a weekly media briefing here in Islamabad on Thursday Pakistan Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said that the military strikes of this morning were not targeted against Iran or its institutions but the terror hideouts there. She said Pakistan fully respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Islamic Republic of Iran, adding that the sole objective of today's act was in pursuit of Pakistan's own security and national interest, which is paramount and could not be compromised.
The spokesperson said Pakistan desires to have peaceful relations with all countries in the region including Iran and Pakistan will continue to engage with Tehran to ensure that peace prevails and the two countries make concerted and coordinated efforts to combat the threat of terrorism.
The spokesperson said Iran is a brotherly country and the people of Pakistan have great respect and affection for the Iranian people, and they have always emphasized dialogue and cooperation in confronting common challenges including the menace of terrorism and will continue its endeavor to find joint solutions.
She confirmed that caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan, Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar, who is in Davos to attend the annual meeting of World Economic Forum, has decided to cut short his visit in view of ongoing developments.
Moreover, Pakistan military confirmed to carry out effective strikes against hideouts inside Iran used by terrorists, responsible for recent attacks in Pakistan. According to a press release by Pakistan military's media wing Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR); the precision strikes were carried out using killer drones, rockets, loitering munitions and standoff weapons and maximum care was taken to avoid collateral damage.
It further said that hideouts used by terrorist organizations namely Balochistan Liberation Army and Balochistan Liberation Front were successfully struck in an intelligence based operation, code name Marg Bar Sarmachar.
The targeted hideouts were being used by notorious terrorists including Dosta alias Chairman, Bajjar alias Soghat, Sahil alias Shafaq, Asghar alias Basham and Wazir alias Wazi, amongst others, it added.
ISPR said that Pakistan Armed Forces remain in a perpetual state of readiness to ensure safety of Pakistani acts of terrorism "Our resolve to ensure citizens against acts of terrorism to ensure that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Pakistan is respected and safeguarded against any misadventure remains unwavering.
"We reaffirm our determination to defeat all enemies of Pakistan with the support of the people of Pakistan," the military said. "Going forward, dialogue and cooperation is deemed prudent in resolving bilateral issues between the two neighboring brotherly countries," it concluded. (end) sbk.zhm