Physical barriers alone can’t stop infiltration without surveillance: ISPR DG.
Says effective border control needs drones, forts and heavy investment.
National security takes priority over trade with Afghanistan, says ISPR chief.
In a major revelation, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry has said that the Afghan Taliban troops engage Pakistan’s border forces with unprovoked firing to facilitate the infiltration of terrorists into the country.
“Borders are always mutually guarded by both countries. On the other side, there is a country whose posts first engage your posts through fire, and an exchange begins. And then they have them [terrorists] pass from the gaps in between,” the top military spokesperson said during an interaction with senior journalists Friday evening.
“If you go to the border of Sindh or Punjab, do you get divided villages or populations, or are you sitting on the border? Here [Pak-Afghan border], there are 29 tribes which are divided. The population is here and there. How will you control the movement on the same border?” he added.
He said that physical barriers alone cannot fully prevent cross-border infiltration, adding that the border fence — if not covered with observation and fire — can be breached within minutes.
Lt Gen Chaudhry said that effective border control requires continuous drone surveillance, fortified posts every few kilometres, and large-scale investment in infrastructure and manpower. “If someone wants to cut an obstacle or build a bridge, it may take only five minutes. To counter that, you need forts every few kilometres and constant monitoring, which comes at a huge cost.”
The ISPR chief also pointed out what he called the “administration issues” in the hinterland. “Go to Tira Khyber. And you will not find any sort of governance. You will not find any courts there. You will not find any departments there… where is the administration over there?”
Lt Gen Chaudhry also termed the “weak administration” in the hinterland and divided border populations as one of the factors enabling terrorism, smuggling, and illegal activities in the border regions.
Populations living on both sides of the border, he further said, create complex security challenges, while the “political-terror-crime nexus” provides support to cross-border threats.
He said the “terror-crime nexus” operates through local cells that facilitate movement, illegal trade, and the transport of weapons and vehicles. “Non-custom-paid vehicle is part of this political-terror-crime nexus, is being used in the vehicle-borne IDs and by these terrorists in their movement.”
Trade with Afghanistan
The ISPR DG said national security will take precedence over trade with Afghanistan, stressing that “blood and business cannot go together” and that economic activity cannot be allowed to continue if it poses a threat to public safety.
“Our problem is not with Afghans. Our problem is with the Afghan Taliban regime. If trade is stopped, it is because security becomes paramount. The lives of our people are more important,” Lt Gen Chaudhry added.
Rejecting any distinction between “good or bad militants”, he said: “In our view, there is only one kind of terrorist, and that is sent to hell.”
136 Afghans among 1,873 terrorists killed in 2025
The ISPR chief added that 67,023 intelligence-based operations (IBOs) were conducted across Pakistan — mostly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan — during the current year as part of counter-terrorism efforts.
He said that 1,873 terrorists, including 136 Afghan nationals, have been killed in 12,857 IBOs carried out in KP and 53,309 in Balochistan.
Lt Gen Chaudhry said that 4,910 IBOs were conducted since November 4, averaging 233 operations per day.
Under the illegal foreign repatriation plan, he went on to say that Pakistan repatriated 971,604 Afghan refugees so far in 2025, including 239,574 individuals during the month of November alone.
Lt Gen Chaudhry added that 366,007 individuals were repatriated in 2024.
Balochistan projects progress
Speaking on Balochistan situation, the ISPR DG said that Category B areas, covering approximately 86% of the province’s population, have now been brought under police jurisdiction.
He said a total of 949 development projects have been identified across 35 districts, including five major dams and 100 smaller dam projects, aimed at improving water resources and boosting agriculture. Of these, 52 projects have been completed so far.
Indian army chief slammed over rhetoric remarks
Commenting on recent statements by the Indian army, he termed them exaggerated and misleading and said, “We can’t help anything with a delusional mind.”
He referred to comments made a few days ago by the chief of the Indian army, who claimed that Pakistan was shown a “trailer of Operation Sindoor.”
“The trailer, which has seven planes falling, 26 places being attacked, and S-400 batteries being destroyed. I think he (Indian army chief) is fond of watching horror films,” he added.
Lt Gen Chaudhry said the purpose of this rhetoric is to convince their population of a supposed victory. “They have to come out with such a sort of rhetoric.”