Islamabad: The national security committee of the Pakistani cabinet will gather for an extraordinary session on Friday evening to discuss the escalation of tensions with Iran, as the countries exchanged cross-border strikes earlier this week, Pakistani newspaper Dawn reported on Friday, citing the country’s information ministry.
The meeting will be chaired by Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar ul Haq Kakar, who cut short his visit to the World Economic Forum in Davos due to the crisis, interim Information Minister Murtaza Solangi told the newspaper.
Solangi did not share the concrete agenda of the meeting, but hinted it would be related to the situation between Pakistan and Iran, the newspaper reported.
On Tuesday, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched ballistic missiles and drones at a base of terrorist group Jaish al-Adl in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan region in retaliation for terrorist attacks on its own territory. This was the first missile strike by the Iranian armed forces on Pakistani territory. Islamabad said that the attack left two children dead and another three injured, condemned Iran’s actions and voiced concerns over Tehran not forewarning Islamabad about the strikes via existing communication channels.
On Thursday, Pakistan responded with overnight precision strikes against “terrorist hideouts” in Iran’s Sistan and Baluchestan. The Pakistani Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Pakistan respects Iran’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and carried out the strikes with the sole purpose of defending its own security and national interests, echoing the tone of the Iranian Foreign Ministry’s statement after the strikes by the IRGC on Pakistani territory.