ISLAMABAD, FEB 01 (DNA) – Afghanistan has handed “undeniable” evidence to Pakistan that it claims shows a recent spate of deadly attacks were planned on Pakistani soil, Afghan officials said on Thursday, amid growing public anger over their impotence to protect civilians.

Mohammad Masoom Stanekzai, the head of Afghanistan’s spy agency, told reporters it was clear that the attacks were “planned from across the border”.

“We asked Pakistan to hand over the culprits of the attacks in Afghanistan and we shared undeniable evidence that the attacks were planned there,” Stanekzai said, a day after meeting with top Pakistani officials in Islamabad.

Afghan Interior Minister Wais Barmak said the Afghans submitted a list of questions during Wednesday’s “constructive” one-hour meeting, asking among other things what action Pakistan will take against Taliban leaders and alleged training centres on their soil.

as saying that Pakistan had agreed to take “practical steps” to act on the information, but the Pakistani embassy in Kabul said the information provided by Stanekzai was “being examined for its authenticity”.

“Pakistan has not given any commitment to give reply to the information received from the NDS Chief Mohammad Masoom Stanekzai, during his trip to Islamabad, yesterday,” the embassy statement saying.

Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua is due to lead a delegation to Kabul on Saturday (Feb 3) for bilateral talks. But the Foreign Office (FO) has said her visit is not linked to the Afghan delegation’s trip and had been scheduled long before.

Kabul, along with Washington, has long accused Islamabad of providing safe havens to leaders of the Taliban and other militant groups. Pakistan denies the charges, insisting it has eradicated safe havens in the tribal region along the border with Afghanistan.

US President Donald Trump has ratcheted up the pressure on Pakistan in 2018 with the aid freeze.