Pakan dismisses Afghan miner’s allegation of allowing US to use its airspace for drone attacks

Pakan has rejected allegations the Taliban’s acting defence miner about the use of its airspace the US for drone attacks in Afghanan, saying his remarks were “highly regrettable” and defied the “norms of responsible diplomatic conduct.”
The allegations were made Mohammad Yaqoob on Sunday, nearly a month after al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri was killed a missile fired from a CIA drone against his hideout in central Kabul on July 31.
The attack was the first known strike the US on a target in Afghanan since Washington withdrew its forces from the war-torn country on August 31 last year.
Yaqoob told reporters in Kabul that US drones have been entering Afghanan via Pakan’s airspace.
Foreign Office Spokesperson Asim Iftikhar Ahmed said in an overnight statement that Pakan has noted, with deep concern, the allegation the Acting Defence Miner of Afghanan regarding the use of Pakan’s air space in the US counter-terrorism drone operation in Afghanan.
“In the absence of any evidence, as acknowledged the Afghan Miner himself, such conjectural allegations are highly regrettable and defy the norms of responsible diplomatic conduct,” he said.
Pakan reaffirmed its belief in the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states and said that it condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.
“We urge the Afghan interim authorities to ensure the fulfilment of international commitments made Afghanan not to allow the use of its territory for terrorism against any country,” the spokesperson said.
Pakani authorities have previously denied involvement in the US drone strike it carried out in Kabul that killed 71-year-old Zawahiri.Border tensions between Pakan and Afghanan have risen since the Taliban seized power last year, with Islamabad claiming militant groups are carrying out regular attacks from the neighbouring country.