Taliban refute Pakistan’s claim of Afghan links in Besham attack

——- Spokesperson says killing of Chinese citizens under tight security cover shows weakness of security agencies

KABUL: The Taliban defence ministry on Wednesday rejected Pakistan’s claim that Afghans were involved in an attack on Chinese engineers, as ties between the neighbouring nations sour amidst rising insecurity.
DG Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Ahmed Sharif had said at a press conference on Tuesday that a suicide bomb attack in March in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s Besham, that killed five Chinese engineers, was planned in neighbouring Afghanistan, and that the bomber was an Afghan national.
He said that despite repeated demands and sharing of evidence, the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) continued to operate from Afghanistan. “Pakistan shared credible evidence, but no action was taken. The linkage of the recent terrorist incidents can be found in Afghanistan.” “Pakistan has helped the Afghan interim government at all levels, but the promises they made in Doha do not seem to be fulfilled. –Agencies