Iran warns: will hit militant 'safe havens' inside Pakistan

[Sher Malang]

The head of the Iranian armed forces warned Islamabad on Monday that Tehran would hit bases inside Pakistan if the government does not confront Sunni militants who carry out cross-border attacks.

Ten Iranian border guards were killed by militants last month. Iran said Jaish al Adl, a Sunni militant group, had shot the guards with long-range guns, fired from inside Pakistan. The border area has long been plagued by unrest from both drug smuggling gangs and separatist militants.

Iran hands over 35 deportees to Pakistan

“We cannot accept the continuation of this situation,” Major General Mohammad Baqeri, the head of the Iranian armed forces was quoted as saying by state news agency IRNA.

“We expect the Pakistani officials to control the borders, arrest the terrorists and shut down their bases.”

“If the terrorist attacks continue, we will hit their safe havens and cells, wherever they are,” he said.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif visited Pakistan last week and asked Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to improve the border security. Pakistan assured Iran it would deploy additional troops along its border.

In 2014 Iran warned it would send troops to Pakistan to retrieve five Iranian border guards kidnapped by Jaish al Adl. Pakistan said at the time that such action would be violation of the international law and warned Iranian forces not to cross the border.

Iran refrained from sending the troops when a local Sunni cleric stepped in and resolved the situation. Four of the guards were released a few months later, but one was killed by the militants.

Iran to assist in curbing terrorism

Jaish al Adl is a Sunni militant group that has carried out several attacks against Iranian security forces with the aim of highlighting what they say is discrimination against minority Sunni Muslims in Iran, where the majority are Shias.

The group claimed responsibility for attacks that killed eight border guards in April 2015 and 14 border guards in October 2013.

https://tribune.com.pk/story/1404372/iran-warns-will-hit-militant-safe-havens-inside-pakistan/

 

[Suff Shikan]

Dear persians! Pakistan is not KSA, Syria, Iraq or Yemen . Cannot even fight militants and dreaming of cross border raids in Pakistan. Kabhi aona khushboo laga k Pakistan .

 

[Icarus]

Dear persians! Pakistan is not KSA, Syria, Iraq or Yemen . Cannot even fight militants and dreaming of cross border raids in Pakistan. Kabhi aona khushboo laga k Pakistan .

You might want to read up on the Iran-Iraq War. The Iranians have quite an appetite for war and have proven themselves capable of fighting a long, drawn out war of attrition.

That being said however, the use of this language is regrettable, especially after Pakistan hosted the Iranian FM and assured him of full cooperation in this regard. With relations already hanging by a thread, any such untoward incident will only drive Pakistan and Iran further apart which would also harm Iran's own interest since Pakistan is the few remaining neutral countries in the Iran-KSA split.

Such threats are to be expected though when we let an incident like Chaman go unpunished. Pakistan's response should have been very strong and very visible. Simply accepting the Afghan's ceasefire and sharing a table with them a few hours after they mercilessly gunned down 12 unarmed civilians and 2 FC men was disgraceful.

 

[Muhammed45]

Pakistan has sent it's border guards to secure the boundaries, coordinated action is expected against the terrorists. Hopefully

 

[Salim_Shady]

Dear persians! Pakistan is not KSA, Syria, Iraq or Yemen . Cannot even fight militants and dreaming of cross border raids in Pakistan. Kabhi aona khushboo laga k Pakistan .

Orrr.......you can pro actively engage with them to neutralize threats, like you do with China.

 

[Icarus]

Pakistan has sent it's border guards to secure the boundaries, coordinated action is expected against the terrorists. Hopefully

It is Pakistan's most earnest wish to keep the border with Iran "cold". Any militant activity that could ratchet up hostilities along one of our only two friendly borders is interpreted as a challenge to Pakistan's integrity and the elements that attempt to sow seeds of discord between the countries will be dealt with swiftly and decisively.

 

[Salim_Shady]

Such threats are to be expected though when we let an incident like Chaman go unpunished. Pakistan's response should have been very strong and very visible. Simply accepting the Afghan's ceasefire and sharing a table with them a few hours after they mercilessly gunned down 12 unarmed civilians and 2 FC men was disgraceful.

That is because Pakistan does not possess resources to sustainably sustain India like situation simultaneously at Afghan, Iran and Indian border. Your boys know their limits very well.

 

[Hassan Guy]

Orrr.......you can pro actively engage with them to neutralize threats, like you do with China.

probably a better idea

 

[sbh02]

Interesting. After productive talks between the Iranian FM and Pakistan, they needed to come up with this jingoistic rhetoric. Iran will do nothing inside Pakistan, anything they do unilaterally will be a bigger loss for them.

 

[Muhammed45]

It is Pakistan's most earnest wish to keep the border with Iran "cold". Any militant activity that could ratchet up hostilities along one of our only two friendly borders is interpreted as a challenge to Pakistan's integrity and the elements that attempt to sow seeds of discord between the countries will be dealt with swiftly and decisively.

Will be more safe when these projects be continued and developed in both sides ::

Safe boundaries have always been the result of economical progress. Do have a look at China-Russia or other economical boundaries. They are always safe because when governments see that boundaries have economical benefits, they will hardly try to secure it. Economy is the keys of safety

 

[Icarus]

That is because Pakistan does not possess resources to sustainably sustain India like situation simultaneously at Afghan, Iran and Indian border. Your boys know their limits very well.

Pakistan has multiple layers of security and your assumption in this regard is flawed. Sure, at the moment Pakistan may have its Army stretched thin but there's always the FC, the ANF, the Coast Guard and other paramilitary agencies that are active in Balochistan.
It is not a resource constraint that limits Pakistan, it is simply Pakistan's wish, as is every other country's to have stable and secure borders. China is a case in point, they have been very actively engaged in resolving border disputes, I doubt the same constraints you see in the case of Pakistan are relevant to them.

Sounds nice but since 2013 , 43 iranian guards have been killed by pakistan based terrorists.
So either pakistan security forces are incompetent to tackle terrorists using their territory or complicit in facilitating the terrorists.
Either way iran has the right to protect its border guards in the way it seems fit.

And yet at the same time, Pakistan has been actively engaged in operations against Jundullah, which had no militant footprint in Pakistan prior to when we engaged them on Iran's request. Pakistan was also actively involved in tracking down and extraditing members of Abdul Malik Reggi's inner circle which eventually lead to his capture and execution by Iran.

 

[sbh02]

I don't understand what Iran wants to do.

Their FM came to Pakistan, and held great talks, and got a pledge for great cooperation from Pakistan.

Instead of following up on that, they make another belligerent, jingoistic statement against Pakistan.

The Pakistani state has never threatened Iran this way. Their nuclear program development is because of Pakistan.

Iran is getting isolated in the world, and doesn't have any friends or allies. Pakistan and the Pakistani people appreciate Iran, we are the only country in the world where the majority of the population view them favorably.

Yet, instead of working with us, they release these jingoistic statements. Pakistan and Pakistanis like Iran, but that does not mean that we take kindly to threats being made against us. We aren't perfect, but we are facing many threats through the WOT in Afghanistan; and it would be better for Iran to work with us.

Sounds nice but since 2013 , 43 iranian guards have been killed by pakistan based terrorists.
So either pakistan security forces are incompetent to tackle terrorists using their territory or complicit in facilitating the terrorists.
Either way iran has the right to protect its border guards in the way it seems fit.

Do you know how many people in your Eastern regions have been killed through insurgencies, bordering Bangladesh, Myanmar. Or your northern states bordering Nepal? These are not unusual circumstances, it doesn't mean complicity.

 

[Mentee]

what if after conducting a joint military operation against the terrorists by both neighboring countries the militants ran into Afghanistan and started using the nato occupied afghnai soil like in the case of b.l.a rats ?

 

[Awan68]

These afghans, iranians n indians are speaking the same language as of late, seems like frustration upon the failiure of their nefrarious designs in balochistan and sindh.
We are confronted with the most idiotic loud mouth nieghbours that lack even a shred of professionalism.
Anyways try it dear iran and next we would be hearing of 50 iranian border gaurds dead instead of 10..
I have been endlessly advocating on this forum that most of us pakistanis are not into sectarianism hence we see iran from a non sectarian perspective yet iran a deeply sectarian state sees us and always will as a sunni enemy state, they proved this by using assisting kalboshan n uzair and allying with india of late...
Our establishment knows all the facts on the ground, its high time we as a nation learn to indentify our enemies.
We bieng a non sectarian state wont change the cold hard fact that iran is a deep one....

 

[RIP Pak LAW]

Pakistanis were right from day 1. Iranis, Indians and Afghans have made an alliance against Pakistan. We will see them.

Anyways more than typical rhetoric from Irani general, I 'd like to see Pakistani Shia members reply to this threat.
@BHarwana