President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Sunday issued a message condemning Saturday’s terror attack targeting Pakistani troops. He underlined that Türkiye would stand with Pakistan in its fight against terrorism.
At least 13 Pakistani soldiers were killed Saturday in a suicide bombing in the country's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province near the Afghan border, while 14 terrorists were killed by the military in subsequent operations, the Pakistani army said.
According to a Pakistani army statement, three civilians, including two children and a woman, were "severely injured" in the attack.
It accused India of being behind the attack. "In a cowardly attack, planned and orchestrated by the terrorist state of India, and executed by its proxy Fitna al Khwarij, a Security Forces convoy was targeted today in general area Mir Ali, North Waziristan District," it said.
Rejecting the allegation, the Indian External Affairs Ministry said: "We have seen an official statement by the Pakistan Army seeking to blame India for the attack in Waziristan on 28 June. We reject this statement with the contempt it deserves."
The attack is one of the deadliest single-day attacks on security forces in recent months in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif "strongly condemned" the attack and praised the army for the operation that killed the 14 terrorists, according to a Prime Minister's Office statement.
A local militant group led by Hafiz Gulbahadar of North Waziristan has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Islamabad accuses Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants, who are allegedly based in Afghanistan, of carrying out terrorist attacks in Pakistan, while Kabul denies that such attacks are launched from its soil.
In a message published on his social media account, Erdoğan wished a speedy recovery for those injured in the heinous attacks and extended condolences to the “brotherly and friendly people of Pakistan and its government.” “Türkiye will continue supporting its old friend Pakistan in its counterterrorism efforts as it did and does in other fields. We will stand with our brothers in the tough times as we did in their good days,” he wrote.
Separately, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a written statement on Saturday that they were deeply saddened by the loss of lives and many injuries caused by the terrorist attack. It expressed that Türkiye stands in solidarity with Pakistan in its fight against terrorism. "We strongly condemn this heinous attack, wish Allah's mercy upon those who lost their lives and a speedy recovery to the injured."
Türkiye and Pakistan maintain close ties and their friendship even led to a disinformation campaign targeting Türkiye and boycott calls by the Indian public during recent tensions between Pakistan and India that followed a terrorist attack.
