Imran Khan’s Kabul visit triggers protests

KANDAHAR (Pajhwok): Protests were carried out on Friday in several provinces against Pakistan.

Prime Minister Imran Khan paid a day-long visit to Kabul on Thursday at the invitation of President Ashraf Ghani.

The Pakistani leader held talks with Ghani and other officials on the peace process and bilateral issues.

Khan promised that Pakistan would do whatever was possible to help reduce violence in Afghanistan.

However, today hundreds of people protested against Imran Khan’s visit in Spin Boldak district in southern Kandahar province near the Pakistani border.

The protestors alleged Pakistan was behind the intensified war in Afghanistan and that the neighboring country had never been sincere to the Afghans.

One of the protestors, Haji Mohammad Daud, who heads tribal associations of five border districts, said Pakistani leaders during their visits to Afghanistan had shown empathy but in real they always worked to destroy Afghanistan and its people.

He said Imran Khan visited Kabul at a time when peace talks were underway in Doha and safe haven of militants remained intact in Pakistan.

He said Imran Khan should have visited Kabul after dismantling training camps of militants in his country.

Daud said the Afghans doubted Pakistan’s intentions and wanted the international community to stop the country from harboring militants.

Another participant, Abdul Rauf, also accused Pakistan of being behind the destruction of Afghanistan and the killing of innocent Afghans.

In neighboring Helmand province, hundreds of people protested against Pakistan in Lashkargah, the provincial capital.

The protestors chanted anti-Pakistan slogans and called Pakistan the main factor behind the four decades-old conflict in Afghanistan.

In northern Balkh province, a protest was carried out against Imran Khan’s visit to Kabul.

The protestors said Imran Khan’s visit was useless and feared Pakistan would sabotage the ongoing peace process.

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