Afghani envoy hits out at Pakistan after Jalalabad attack; says India, Afghanistan are victims of terror from same source

New Delhi, July 3: Hitting out at Pakistan indirectly, Afghani envoy to New Delhi Shaida Mohammad Abdali on Monday said that India and Afghanistan are victims of terror from the same source i.e across the border. The statement from Afghani envoy comes a day after a suicide bomb attack hit Jalalabad of eastern Afghanistan in which at least 19 people including 13 from the Sikh Community were killed. 

The Afghan official firstly condemned the suicide attack in Jalalabad and said that India and Afghanistan must stand together to free the two countries from terrorism. "Afghanistan and India are victims of terrorism from the same sources and that's why they have to stand together with rest of the world to fight terrorism in order for the two of us to be freed from the menace of terrorism attacking both nations," he added.

Shaida Abdali further stated that Afghanistan has been a victim of terrorism almost on a daily basis but it has the resolve to defeat the menace. The Afghan envoy, in the end, noted that though the attack has been claimed by the Islamic State terror group, it is a fact that terrorism into Afghanistan is coming from across the border.

On Sunday, a suicide bomb attack in Jalalabad of eastern Afghanistan killed at least 19 people including 13 from the Sikh Community. Also, more than 20 were injured. Ten members of the Afghan Sikh Community, including Avtar Singh Khalsa, were among those who lost their lives. Singh was a long time leader of Sikh community who had planned to run in the Parliamentary elections set for October.

Immediately after the attack, the ISIS claimed the responsibility of the attack. Meanwhile, in a tweet, PM Modi condemned the incident, terming it as an attack on Afghanistan's multi-cultural fabric. In a tweet, he said, India stands ready to assist the Afghan government in this sad hour. Modi extended his condolences to the bereaved families and hoped that the injured recover soon.

On Monday evening, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj met the relatives of some of the victims of the Jalalabad terror attack and condemned the act.

MEA Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar in a tweet said, "EAM @SushmaSwaraj expressed sincere condolences during her meeting with a delegation of representatives of SGPC (Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee), Sikh community from Afghanistan and relatives of the victims."