Jaish al-Adl is designated a “terrorist” organization by Iran.
Tehran:
Iran International English quoted reports from Iranian state-run media that Iranian troops killed Ismail Shahbakhsh, a senior commander of the “Justice Army” armed group, and some of his companions on Pakistani soil.
The latest development showed that Iranian forces attacked a militant group in an armed conflict a month after the two countries exchanged air strikes.
According to Arab News, Jaish al-Adl was founded in 2012. It is a Sunni terrorist organization operating in Sistan-Balochistan in southeastern Iran and is listed as a “terrorist” organization by Iran.
“Jaish al-Adl” has carried out numerous attacks on Iranian security forces over the years. In December, Jaish al-Adl admitted responsibility for an attack on a police station in Sistan-Balochistan province that killed at least 11 police officers, Arab News reported.
However, last month, Pakistan and Iran jointly agreed to expand security cooperation, weeks after conducting missile attacks on “terrorist forces” on each other’s territory, News International reported.
The agreement was announced by Pakistani Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Gilani and Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdullahian at a joint press conference held at the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Gilani said both Iran and Pakistan were able to clear up “misunderstandings” fairly quickly. The two countries also agreed to combat terrorism in their respective regions and address each other’s concerns.
However, recent attacks show the opposite.
Notably, tensions between Tehran and Islamabad escalated after the two countries carried out missile attacks on each other targeting “terrorists”.
Late at night on January 16, Iran launched missile and drone attacks on Pakistan, destroying two “important headquarters” of the Justice Army. Islamabad claimed the attack killed two children and injured three girls, Arab News reported, citing the Tasnim news agency.
Pakistan withdrew its ambassador to Iran on January 17 and announced that it would not allow the Iranian envoy who was visiting his home country to return to the country in protest of the “blatant violation” of its sovereignty.
The next day, January 18, Pakistan launched a retaliatory attack inside Iran. Islamabad said it was targeting hideouts used by “terrorist armed groups” namely the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and the Baloch Liberation Front (BLF).
However, the two countries later agreed to return their ambassadors to their respective posts and decided to work together to “de-escalate” tensions, Geo News reported.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
