WASHINGTON – US President Joe Biden has condemned Iran’s strike on Pakistan, asserting that the tensions between the two nations highlight Iran’s lack of popularity in the region.
Following Tehran’s violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty with a strike in Balochistan that resulted in casualties, Pakistan retaliated with targeted strikes on terrorist hideouts inside Iran.
The Pakistan Army, in a statement, revealed that the operation, codenamed “Marg Bar Sarmachar,” successfully targeted hideouts used by militant organizations such as the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF) through precision strikes using various weapons.
President Biden commented on the clashes, stating, “As you can see, Iran is not particularly well-liked in the region, and where that goes, we’re working on now. I don’t know where that goes.”
The United States has been engaged in a standoff with Iran over its support for Houthi rebels in Yemen, who have been disrupting commercial shipping in the Red Sea. White House national security spokesperson John Kirby emphasized the U.S.’s close monitoring of the Iran-Pakistan clashes and expressed a desire to prevent further escalation in South and Central Asia. He also characterized the attack on Pakistan as another instance of Iran’s destabilizing behavior in the region.
UN Chief Antonio Guterres voiced concern over the military exchanges between Iran and Pakistan, urging both countries to exercise maximum restraint to prevent an escalation of tensions. Pakistan’s foreign ministry described the retaliatory strikes as a series of highly coordinated and specifically targeted precision military operations against terrorist hideouts in Sistan-Baluchistan. Investigations are ongoing to determine the presence of Pakistanis in the affected Iranian village, where all casualties occurred.
