Exclusive: Pakistan calls airspace violation by Iran ‘sad incident’, says ‘have taken measures’

Pakistan's Caretaker Information Minister Murtaza Solangi called the airspace violation by Iran a "sad incident" during an interview with WION's Pakistanbureau chief Anas Mallick.

Islamabad claimed that the airspace violation had caused the deaths of two children after Iranian state media said Iranian missiles targeted two bases of the militant group Jaish al-Adl.

A top Iranian diplomat said on Wednesday (Jan 17) that his country's armed forces targeted a "terrorist group" in Pakistan the day before.

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Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland: "On Pakistan, none of the nationals of the friendly and brotherly country of Pakistan were targeted by Iranian missiles and drones."

"The so-called Jaish al-Adl group, which is an Iranian terrorist group, was targeted," he added.

Jaish al-Adl was formed in 2012. It is blacklisted by Iran as a terrorist group and has carried out several attacks on Iranian soil in recent years. Earlier, Iran had launched missile attacks on "spy headquarters" and "terrorist" targets in Syria, and Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region.

During the interview with WION, which was aired on Wednesday, Solangi said, "There's a history of cordial relations between Iran and Pakistan. It is a sad incident."

"The government of Pakistan, especially the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has already responded. We have taken some measures and we are assessing the situation," he said.

"We are also in the process of investigating what happened and when, and who is responsible for it, despite the claims that have been made, but we would not rush to judgment," he further said during the interview.

Watch the interview here:

Tensions flare up between Iran and Pakistan

Pakistan on Wednesday recalled its ambassador from neighbouring Iran in the immediate aftermath of the airspace violation, the foreign ministry in Islamabad said.

The incident may cause a serious and unprecedented escalation amid tensions between the two Muslim nations, with the South Asian nation facing public pressure to retaliate.

But some experts suggested that Islamabad would consider diplomatic channels to tackle the issue, instead of military escalation.

Pakistan has neither confirmed the exact location nor the nature of the violation, but a local report mentioned that it was near Panjgur in southwest Balochistan province, where the countries share a sparsely populated border of nearly 1,000 kilometres.