The minister of defence claims that those responsible for the anti-martyr social media campaign must be “linked with the terrorists.”

He told the reporters on Sunday in Sialkot, “Terrorism against us is mostly being conducted from Afghanistan.” 

On Saturday, in the North Waziristan district, terrorists attacked a security force installation, resulting in the deaths of two officers and five soldiers of the Pakistan Army. 

Pakistan has often charged that the Afghan government is not doing enough to combat terrorist groups operating on its territory, such as the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which is responsible for cross-border assaults on civilians and security personnel. 

According to Radio Pakistan, Asif stated during today’s press conference that Pakistan has brought up the matter with the Afghan authorities and that sure terrorists’ enablers have been identified. 

He further stated that “those people [foreign nationals] who do not have valid documents would not be allowed to live in Pakistan”. 

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar issued a warning earlier today, accusing the social media team of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) of being responsible for the accounts that targeted the Pakistan Army and the service members who were killed in North Waziristan the day before. 

Speaking about the terror attack, Tarar stated that the Pakistan Army, police, and people in the fight against terrorism have made sacrifices. 

At a press conference in Lahore, the information minister declared, “I condemn the insulting social media campaign launched by a political party against the martyrs and their sacrifices.” 

The defence minister claimed that individuals responsible for the anti-martyr social media campaign needed to be “linked with the terrorists” without mentioning the PTI. 

He claimed that the province most impacted by terrorism is Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, home to the PTI. 

Following the martyrdom of seven army men, including two officers, in a terrorist attack one day earlier, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif claimed that militants were utilizing Afghan territory to launch attacks inside Pakistan.

The defence minister said in a different tweet on his X handle that the PTI’s purported complicity in the slander campaign against the military and martyrs is an example of an “anti-state attitude.” 

“Who brought thousands of terrorists from Afghanistan to Pakistan and kept explaining the benefits of their return in the National Assembly,” Asif remarked, alluding to the previous PTI-led government policy to reach a ceasefire deal with the TTP.

Additionally, he questioned why there was an increase in terrorism in the nation after the PTI’s government was overthrown. 

Determine the adversaries. Power is a prerequisite for loyalty to Pakistan,” he continued. 

Asad Qaiser, a top PTI leader, responded by calling it “misleading propaganda” and scolding federal ministers for allegedly accusing his party of waging an “insulting campaign” against the martyrs of the Pakistan Army and security services people. 

“It is regrettable that Khawaja Asif and Ata Tarar have been spreading false information about the martyrs of the Pakistan Army,” Qaiser told reporters. 

In November of last year, the caretaker government launched a deportation drive targeting unlawful refugees, primarily Afghans, in response to an increase in terrorist attacks.