The arrested attacker from the Karachi raid, identified as Usman Ali, told investigators he'd traveled from Jalalabad in Afghanistan about a week, before the attack. Pakistan wasted no time connecting those evidence.Tarar said the operation targeted "hideouts and safe havens of terrorists belonging to Jamaat ul Ahrar and Fitna al Khawarij," the same groups Pakistan blamed for the Karachi assault. Kabul hasn't responded yet and Afghan sources, however, are pushing back hard, claiming more than 35 civilians were killed in the strikes, including children. Pakistan hasn't addressed that directly.
Sunday's cross-border operation came less than three weeks after Pakistan's military launched airstrikes on what it said were militant hideouts in Afghanistan, ending about a month of relative calm. China had hosted peace talks,between the two countries in April, and both sides reportedly agreed to avoid further escalation. The Karachi attack killed three Pakistani soldiers on Saturday night.
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