Pakistan and Iran agree to work together to improve security after tit-for-tat airstrikes
Source: Associated Press
Pakistan and Iran agree to work together to improve security after tit-for-tat airstrikes
BY MUNIR AHMED
Updated 5:45 AM EST, January 29, 2024
ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan and Iran on Monday agreed to work together to improve security cooperation in the wake of deadly airstrikes by Tehran and Islamabad earlier this month that killed at least 11 people, marking a significant escalation in fraught relations between the neighbors.
The development came after the top Iranian diplomat, Hossein Amirabdollahian, held talks in Islamabad with his Pakistani counterpart, Jalil Abbas Jilani. The Iranian foreign minister also met with Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul-Haq-Kakar.
Iran-Pakistan ties were dramatically imperiled on Jan. 17, when Iran launched airstrikes in Pakistan’s restive southwestern Baluchistan province, targeting what Tehran said were hideouts of the anti-Iran Sunni militant group Jaish al-Adl, or the Army of Justice. Pakistan said two children were killed and tree others were wounded.
Angered over the strikes, Pakistan recalled its ambassadors from Tehran and launched airstrikes against alleged militant hideouts inside Iran, in the Sistan and Baluchestan province, killing at least nine people. Islamabad said it was targeting Baluch militant groups with separatist goals.
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Read more: https://apnews.com/article/iran-pakistan-airstrikes-tensions-84082a61517bc8ad518d6fa561fdd3bc