ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has “credible evidence” linking Indian operatives to the killings of two of its people on Pakistani soil, Foreign Secretary Syrus Qazi said Thursday, revealing India’s “sophisticated and sinister” program of extraterritorial and extrajudicial assassinations.
“These are killings-for-hire cases involving a sophisticated international set-up spread over multiple jurisdictions,” Foreign Secretary Syrus Qazi told reporters at a press conference in Islamabad.
According to Qazi, India’s reckless and irresponsible move calls into doubt its credibility as an international participant, as well as its aspirations for increased global responsibilities.
Already strained by historical baggage and border issues, Islamabad-New Delhi relations reached new lows following the 2016 Kulbushan Yadav espionage arrest and the 2019 revocation of Indian Illegal Occupied Jammu and Kashmir’s (IIOJK) special status.
The Kashmir move, a clear breach of international law, halted diplomacy and stifled trade between the two neighbouring countries. For more than four years, Pakistan has demanded that the IIOJK’s unique status be restored before it can resume relations with its nuclear neighbour.
Pakistan’s latest statement comes months after Canada and the United States independently accused Indian spies of being involved in assassination attempts on their soil. However, New Delhi has denied Ottawa’s charges and opened a probe into Washington’s claims.
Qazi detailed the “sophisticated and sinister” Indian campaign of killings inside Pakistan, claiming that Indian spies exploited technology and safe havens on foreign land to carry out assassinations in Pakistan.
“They recruited, financed and supported criminals, terrorists and unsuspecting civilians to play defined roles in these assassinations,” he went on to say.
The foreign secretary chastised Indian media and social media accounts for making hasty claims and glorifying the aforementioned killings as “successful retribution against ‘enemies’ of India” and projecting their ability to carry out these criminal crimes.
“Potential assassins were recruited, using social media, talent spotters and fake Da’esh accounts,” Qazi stated in a statement.
