Pakistan hopes steep cost of airstrikes on Taliban targets will protect against terror attacks

"Since the 2021 Taliban takeover, waves of terrorist attacks have pummelled Pakistan, launched from what Islamabad considers to be sanctuaries in Afghanistan. Pakistan says that its patience has snapped, naming an operation launched at the end of last month Ghazab lil-Haq or Righteous Fury. A senior Pakistani security official said that, as Pakistan was facing a rise in bloodshed, Afghanistan should also suffer, asking: Why should they live in peace?"

"The Taliban has denounced the airstrikes as a violation of sovereignty and vowed to retaliate. It has hinted at unleashing suicide bombers. They should not think that they can martyr people in Kabul, destroy the city and disturb its security, while remaining safe in Islamabad, the Taliban's defence minister, Mohammad Yaqoob said earlier this month."

"An escalating Pakistani campaign of airstrikes against targets in Afghanistan is aimed at forcing the Taliban authorities to abandon their support for Pakistani militants, according to officials and experts. The strategy is to impose such a steep cost on the Taliban administration that they act to prevent attacks emanating from Afghanistan. Yet it carries the risk of spiralling violence."

Pakistan has launched an intensified airstrike campaign against Afghanistan, named Operation Righteous Fury, targeting what it claims are military and terrorist infrastructure used by militants attacking Pakistani territory. Since the Taliban's 2021 takeover, Pakistan has experienced waves of terrorist attacks originating from Afghan sanctuaries. Pakistani officials argue the Taliban must suffer consequences equivalent to Pakistan's bloodshed to incentivize action against these groups. The Taliban has condemned the strikes as sovereignty violations and threatened retaliation, including suicide bombings. An overnight airstrike on Kabul reportedly killed 400 people at a facility Afghan authorities identified as a drug rehabilitation center, though Pakistan disputed this characterization. The escalating cycle risks spiraling into broader regional conflict.

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