India On Iran Strikes In Pak

New Delhi:

Iran’s missile attack on Pakistan is an issue that concerns only those two nations, India said today. The foreign ministry, however, added that New Delhi has “zero tolerance for terrorism” and understands “actions that countries take in their self defense”.

“This is a matter between Iran and Pakistan. Insofar as India is concerned, we have an uncompromising zero tolerance towards terrorism. We understand actions that countries take in their self defense,” foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in response to media queries.

Yesterday, Iran said it has dismantled two bases of Sunni Balochi terror group Jaish al Adl — meaning Army of Justice — in Pakistan with drones and missiles. The group had earlier attacked Iranian security forces in the border area with Pakistan. On December 15, 11 police officers were killed when Jaish al-Adl operatives attacked another police station.

“We only targeted the Iranian terrorist group on the soil of Pakistan. We respect sovereignty and territorial integrity of Pakistan, but we don’t allow national security to be compromised or played with,” said Iran Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who is at Davos attending the annual meet of the World Economic Forum.

Pakistan said two children were killed in the missile strikes and warned that the incident was “completely unacceptable” and could have “serious consequences”. Islamabad lodged a strong protest with the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tehran. It also recalled its ambassador to Iran and suspended all planned high-level bilateral visits.

In a statement, Pakistan said it strongly condemned “this blatant violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty and that the responsibility for the consequences will lie squarely with Iran”.

Today, Pakistan foreign minister Jalil Abbas Jilani said terrorism is a “common threat” to the region and required coordinated efforts to combat it. “Unilateral actions could seriously undermine regional peace and stability,” the Pakistan foreign ministry said.

The attack came a day after Iran’s missile strikes in Iraq and Syria against what it called “anti-Iranian terrorist groups”.