Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Major Gen Athar Abbas has said that regular army and FC have been sent to border areas with Afghanistan to stop militant attacks. Talking to Radio Pakistan, he said Pakistan would not allow militants to carry out attacks on our checkposts and border villages and kill our civilians. The ISPR DG said about 100 personnel of police, levies and paramilitary forces had so far been killed in attacks from across the border during last four months. “ISAF was informed about these attacks, besides pointing out the location of hideouts of militants, but no action has so far been taken, which may prove that safe havens and bunkers have been destroyed or militants have fled from there,” he added. He said apparently there was no presence of Afghan Army or ISAF in the vast area from where militants were operating against Pakistan.
Maj Gen Abbas said about 37 security personnel were martyred in the Chitral attack, which was the first such attack and a matter of great concern. To a question, he said there was a report that the militants had attacked Bajaur, but no casualty had been reported so far. The ISPR DG said Dir was the area most affected by militant attacks and a terrorist group who fled from Swat was involved in these attacks. He said the army had strengthened all border checkposts and increased troop numbers in Dir. Maj Gen Abbas added that militants had safe havens in Kunar, Nooristan and Nangarhar provinces and there were no security forces in most of these areas of Afghanistan. He said Pakistan could not launch operation across the border.
