Pakistan accuses Taliban of sheltering TTP to deflect blame for ISIS support

Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesperson for the Taliban, accused Pakistan on Sunday of supporting the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISIS-K) during an interview with Radio Tehran. Mujahid claimed that 'circles within this country's army use this group for their own goals and finance it,' linking the recent deadly ISIS-K attack on Shia worshippers in Islamabad to 'support and nurturing' by the Pakistani government. He warned that such a 'policy of ISIS breeding' would harm the people of both Pakistan and Afghanistan.

One day later, Mushtaq Zaidy, spokesperson for the Pakistani prime minister, responded on his X account, stating that UN Security Council reports present a 'completely different narrative' from Mujahid's claims. Zaidy emphasized that despite official denials, these reports confirm the continued presence and activity in Afghanistan of several terrorist groups, including Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Al-Qaeda, and ISIS-K.

According to Zaidy, the UN documents indicate that the Taliban attributes violence to ISIS-K while denying TTP's presence in Afghanistan. He described Afghanistan as having become a 'safe haven' for these expanding groups, which share recruitment, supply, and logistical networks and coordinate with each other. Zaidy rejected the Taliban's portrayal of these groups as separate, calling it an attempt to complicate the issue.

Zaidy further noted that Pakistan has provided 'irrefutable evidence' of terrorism originating from Afghanistan and impacting Pakistan, accusing the Taliban regime of diverting attention from its responsibilities to its people and neighbors.