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Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif thanked the US for recognizing Pakistan’s role in arresting Afghan terrorist Shareefullah, involved in the 2021 Kabul airport attack, pledging continued cooperation.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. (File photo/Reuters)
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has expressed gratitude towards the United States for acknowledging his nation’s efforts in arresting the Afghan terrorist involved in planning the deadly 2021 suicide attack at the Kabul airport that claimed the lives of 13 troops and 170 Afghans during the American withdrawal from Afghanistan.
“We thank US President Donald Trump for acknowledging and appreciating Pakistan’s role and support in counter-terrorism efforts across the region, in the context of Pakistan Security Forces’ recent apprehension of ISKP’s top tier operational commander Shareefullah, who is an Afghanistan National. The wanted terrorist was apprehended in a successful operation conducted in the Pakistan-Afghan border region,” he wrote on X.
We thank US President Donald Trump for acknowledging and appreciating Pakistan’s role and support in counter terrorism efforts across the region, in the context of Pakistan Security Forces’ recent apprehension of ISKP’s top tier operational commander Shareefullah, who is an…— Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) March 5, 2025
“The resolve of our leadership and our people remains unflinching, to eradicate the menace of terrorism from our country. We will continue to partner closely with the United States in securing regional peace and stability,” he added.
Trump, who was addressing the joint Congress at Capitol Hill on Tuesday evening, said the US was extraditing the “top terrorist” involved in the 2021 bombing at the Abbey Gate in Afghanistan where 13 US service members were killed.
“Tonight, I am pleased to announce that we have just apprehended the top terrorist responsible for that atrocity, and he is right now on his way here to face the swift sword of American justice,” Trump said in his joint address to Congress.
A White House official confirmed that Mohammad Sharifullah, who was allegedly involved in the planning of the deadly Abbey Gate bombing during the Afghanistan withdrawal in 2021, was being extradited to the US.
In his speech, Trump thanked Pakistan for “helping arrest this monster.”
Pakistan acted on CIA intelligence that led to the arrest of Sharifullah, according to another source familiar with the matter.
Trump’s CIA Director, John Ratcliffe, raised the issue during his first phone call with the Pakistani intel chief, which took place during his first few days on the job, the source added.
