Asim Munir asks Afghan Taliban to choose between TTP and Pakistan

Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir

Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir has asked Afghanistan’s Taliban regime to choose between TTP and Pakistan, saying that a majority of militant groups infiltrating across the border comprise Afghan nationals.

Addressing the National Ulema Conference in Islamabad recently, Munir also drew parallels between Pakistan and the state established by the Prophet 1,400 years ago in the Arab region (today’s Saudi Arabia). While official details of the address delivered on December 10 were limited, selected clips of his speech were broadcast on local television on Sunday. Munir asked the Afghan Taliban government to choose between Pakistan and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), saying that Afghan nationals form the major part of terrorism coming from across the border.

“In the TTP formations coming [into Pakistan], 70 per cent are Afghans,” he said. “Is Afghanistan not spilling the blood of our Pakistani children?” He reiterated his call that the Afghan Taliban should choose between Pakistan and the TTP. The CDF further said that no one could order jihad in an Islamic state other than the state itself.

“No one can issue a fatwa for jihad without the order and permission and will of those vested with the authority,” he said during the conference. His speech was loaded with Islamic references, and he also cited multiple verses from the Quran during his address. The Field Marshal also stated that there are 57 Islamic countries in the world, and among them, “God gave us the honour of being the protectors of Haramain Sharifain (a reference to Makkah and Madina).”

He also claimed that Pakistan got “divine help” during the May conflict with India. “We felt it (divine help),” he claimed. India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in retaliation for the Pahalgam attack that killed 26 civilians. The strikes triggered four days of intense clashes between the two countries and ended with an understanding to stop the military actions on May 10.