The Ministry of Interior (MoI) on Wednesday said Pakistan’s military establishment planned and provided the necessary aid to Taliban insurgents to carry out the coordinated attack on Ghazni city earlier this month. 

According to the MoI, foreign militants were also among those killed in the Ghazni battle, but Pakistan’s embassy in Kabul has hit out over the claims and said these claims are false.  

“Pakistan and Pakistan’s military were involved in the plan to attack Ghazni; Pakistan provided all sufficient aid to them and it’s very clear,” said MoI spokesman Najib Danish. 

“There has been an intelligence weakness in Ghazni,” said Mohammad Radmanish, deputy spokesman for the ministry of defense.

Prior to the attack, Afghan security officials visited Ghazni and pledged to the people that their city would be protected against Taliban attacks.  

However, video footage seen by TOLOnews shows the moment Taliban fired a missile on a gathering of security forces in Ghazni. Dozens of security force members were wounded while other can be seen fleeing the scene.  

This attack happened on July 8 during a security meeting presided over by the Minister of Defense Tariq Shah Bahrami.

“During this fighting season, the enemies of Afghanistan planned to take over some districts and even some provinces in the east, south and southwest of the country,” said Tariq Shah Bahrami during the meeting in Ghazni on July 8.

Security officials have frequently said that the Afghan security forces had been put on high alert to repel any attack by the Taliban on Ghazni city. 

At another high level meeting, which was held on 30 November 2017, Nizmaduddin Khanjar, the commander of 203 Thunder Army Corps made promises to the people of Ghazni that the city will be secured. 

“I assure you that the cowardly and ignorant enemy will not be able to plot any conspiracy against the country, especially against Ghazni city,” said Khanjar last year. 

However, these statements rang hollow after the four day siege of Ghazni and three weeks later, the signs of war are still clearly visible in the city.  

“The government came after four days of war when all things were torched and destroyed,” said Abdul Ghafar, one Ghazni shopkeeper said. 

“There are 75 shops in each story (of this building), 225 shops were torched on three stories of the building,” said Fareed Ahmad, the owner of a shopping mall in Ghazni.

The Taliban made significant advances on parts of Ghazni after launching a major offensive on the city. But the Afghan security forces pushed back the Taliban following four days of deadly battles. 

Security officials argue that the Taliban planned the attack six months earlier and during this period, they deployed their fighters in Ghazni from neighboring provinces in a move that added to the strength of the militant group.