Pakistan says children killed in Iranian strike
Pakistan reported on Tuesday that two children lost their lives, and three others sustained injuries in attacks by Iran, its neighboring country.
According to a news agency affiliated with Iran’s military, the strikes were aimed at two bases associated with the militant group Jaish al-Adl. This incident marks the third instance of an Iranian attack within a few days, following strikes on Iraq and Syria.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry denounced the “illegal” strikes and warned of potential “serious consequences.” The ministry stated that terrorism poses a “common threat,” emphasizing that “unilateral acts are not in conformity with good neighborly relations.”
The missile strike by Iran on Pakistan is a rare occurrence. The attack targeted a village in the vast southwestern province of Balochistan, situated along the approximately 900km (559 miles) shared border between the two nations. Security concerns along this border have been a longstanding issue for both governments.
In the sparsely populated region, Pakistan and Iran have been engaged in combating armed separatist groups, including Jaish al-Adl, for decades. Tehran has connected this group to attacks last month near the border, resulting in the deaths of more than a dozen Iranian police officers.
At the time, Iran’s interior minister Ahmad Vahidi said the militants responsible had entered the country from Pakistan.
Jaish al-Adl is the “most active and influential” Sunni militant group operating in Sistan-Baluchestan, according to the office of the US Director of National Intelligence.
On Tuesday, Iran launched ballistic missile strikes against targets in Iraq’s northern city of Irbil, prompting condemnation by the US.
