Iran summons Pakistan’s top diplomat as tensions escalate after retaliatory strike

Targeting Baloch Militants, Pakistan conducted strikes inside Iran on Thursday. This comes just two days after Iran claimed to have attacked another group within Pakistani territory. Iranian media reported that several missiles hit a village in the Sistan-Baluchestan province, resulting in the death of at least nine people. Initial reports indicated that three women and four children, all non-Iranians, were among the casualties. The relationship between Pakistan and Iran has been rocky in the past, but these strikes mark the most significant cross-border intrusions in recent years. Pakistan’s foreign ministry stated that the strikes were a “series of highly coordinated and specifically targeted precision military strikes against terrorist hideouts.” They emphasized that Pakistan fully respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iran. The ministry further clarified that the objective of the operation was to ensure Pakistan’s own security and national interest, which they consider paramount and non-negotiable. Iran strongly condemned the strikes and summoned Pakistan’s charge d’affaires in Tehran to provide an explanation. Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-haq Kakar has decided to cut short his visit to the World Economic Forum in Davos and return home.