Pakistan has ruled out the possibility of holding any dialogue with the proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), citing the terror outfit's involvement in the killing of Pakistani and foreign nationals.
"The TTP is involved in the killing of Pakistani and foreign citizens inside Pakistan," FO Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said in a weekly news briefing in Islamabad on Thursday.
The foreign office spokesperson said Pakistan expects the Afghan authorities to take action against terrorist groups that have found sanctuaries on its soil and are using them for launching terror attacks across the border.
"Pakistan respects Afghanistan's sovereignty and territorial integrity and expects the authorities in the neighbouring country to uphold their sovereignty," she said.
Responding to a question regarding the repatriation of Afghan refugees, Baloch said Pakistan is committed to implementing the Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan (IFRP).
"The IFRP is meant for the implementation of the laws of Pakistan," she said, adding that the plan was designed to launch action against illegal immigrants residing in Pakistan without documentation.
She further stated that illegal immigrants from several countries have been sent back to their respective countries under the IFRP.
While referring to the repatriation of illegal foreigners including Afghans to their home countries, the FO spokesperson said that the first phase of this plan was near completion.
Clarifying there were multiple categories of Afghan refugees residing in the country, the spokesperson stressed the government had not given any understanding to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) about the "suspension" of the plan.
She pointed out that the government had extended the validity of the Proof of Registration cards of Afghan refugees for a year.
In a July 9 meeting with top Pakistani officials including Prime Minister Shehbaz, UNHCR Filippo Grandi appreciated the country for "suspending the Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan", a statement from the UN body had said.
The statement further said that Grandi had also sought assurance from Pakistani authorities that the repatriation plan would remain on hold.
To a question, Baloch said Pakistan and the United States have a multifaceted and robust partnership.
She said Pakistan believe this relationship should move forward on the basis of mutual respect, sovereign equality and non-interference in each other's internal affairs.
In her media briefing, Baloch also reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to providing political, diplomatic, and moral support to the Kashmiri people for the just and peaceful solution of the Kashmir dispute in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions.
Baloch said the 93rd 'Youm-e-Shuhada-e-Kashmir' (Kashmir Martyrs Day) would be observed on July 13 to honour the martyrdom of 22 Kashmiris who sacrificed their lives in Srinagar in 1931, bravely facing the indiscriminate firing of Dogra forces under the former Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir.
“We salute their courage, which ignited a determined movement for the rights and freedoms of the Kashmiri people and their right to self-determination. This movement continues to this day," she said.
The FO spokesperson mentioned that like the Dogra forces, Indian occupation forces have martyred thousands of Kashmiris in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) in recent decades simply for advocating for their rights.
“Burhan Muzaffar Wani, an iconic youth leader from Kashmir, was among the hundreds who fell victim to extrajudicial killings in the IIOJK. His eighth martyrdom anniversary was observed on July 8th,” she remarked.
Commenting on Israeli aggression in Gaza, Baloch said Pakistan strongly condemned this week’s indiscriminate attacks by Israel on four schools in the besieged territory, which resulted in the massacre of dozens of women and children seeking shelter there.
These attacks are further evidence of Israel’s genocidal campaign against the people of Gaza, she concluded.
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