Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Friday that 297 Afghan Taliban fighters were killed and more than 450 injured during “Operation Ghazb lil Haq,” launched in response to what he described as unprovoked cross-border attacks. In an update shared on social media platform X, he provided further operational details, stating that 89 check posts were destroyed, 18 posts were captured, and 135 tanks and armed vehicles were destroyed. He added that 29 locations across Afghanistan were effectively targeted through air operations. Addressing a press conference earlier in the day, Tarar termed the Afghan Taliban regime “illegitimate” and accused it of fully backing terrorist elements involved in attacks inside Pakistan. He said Pakistan exercised its right to self-defence after Afghan Taliban forces initiated aggression along the border. The minister said the attackers were neutralised and forced to flee, leaving behind arms and bodies, and that several Taliban posts had been captured by Pakistani forces. Tarar reiterated that Pakistan would continue to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity against any aggression. “The Afghan Taliban has no right to oppress the people in Afghanistan, and the people are not with them. They are against their views and mindset,” Tarar said. READ MORE: Pakistan destroys 73 Afghan posts in cross-border strikes, 274 Afghan Taliban operatives killed: DG ISPR He added that Pakistan would continue to fight terrorism and the extremist mindset promoted by the regime. The minister also condemned the Taliban’s treatment of women, saying their policies had blocked generations of women from education and normalised abuse. “Women’s lives are valued less than anyone in the country,” he said, accusing the regime of using religion to further illegitimate causes and strengthen its rule. Tarar described the Afghan Taliban’s new criminal regulation as one that “legalises slavery, violence and repression of women,” institutionalises authoritarian control, and violates international human rights norms. READ MORE: PM Shehbaz briefed on Pak-Afghan situation He also linked the Taliban regime to recent attacks in Pakistan, including incidents at a Shia mosque and district courts, and the martyrdom of Lt. Colonel Gulfaraz Ahmad. “Afghan soil is being used for terror attacks inside Pakistan, and the Taliban regime is fully aligned with and backing these terrorists,” he said. Calling the nexus between the Afghan Taliban and terrorism “clear as daylight,” Tarar said the regime trains and facilitates militants who carried out attacks on Pakistani civilians and security personnel. He concluded by reiterating that the Taliban regime’s rule was “based on repression” and that it sought to subdue women, minorities and children while usurping basic citizen rights in Afghanistan.