The Chief Minister of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Sohail Afridi, has accused the Pakistani army of insulting the Pashtun people, especially those from the tribal areas. Afridi claimed that the army treats these people worse than animals.
According to a report by TOLO News, Afridi said that the Pakistani military, under the leadership of Asim Munir, used to tie dogs inside mosques in the tribal areas of KP and tell the locals that “they and these dogs are equal in status.” He called this act a barbaric outrage. Afridi stated that the army continuously runs operations in KP, which he believes should be considered war crimes.
“When we would go and tell them that they are violating the sanctity of the mosque, they would tell us ‘you and these dogs are no different’,” CM Afridi said. He further added, “Despite this, we still support them … but do they know the pain of my people?”
Sohail Afridi, Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has recently stated that the Pakistani army used to tie dogs inside mosques in the tribal areas and told the people, “You and these dogs have the same status.”
Criticizing the Pakistani military operations in Khyber… pic.twitter.com/br5Jr47nv3
— TOLOnews English (@TOLONewsEnglish) November 7, 2025
Afridi also criticized the military operations for harming ordinary civilians and the mistreatment of women from the Pashtun tribe. He reiterated that these acts amount to war crimes and called for a halt in such operations for the sake of the people’s dignity in these areas. Mr. Afridi further stated that with these military operations, the Pashtun women were being dishonored.
However, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi condemned the remarks by the province’s Chief Minister, saying that he was “disparaging the security forces and assailing counter-terrorism operations in KP.” In a post on X, Kundi wrote, “The brave sons of our soil lay down their lives to protect our province — questioning their intent in sensational terms only damages morale and public safety.”
I condemn any rhetoric that seeks to undermine the honour and sacrifice of our armed forces. The brave sons of our soil lay down their lives to protect our province — questioning their intent in sensational terms only damages morale and public safety. Intelligence based… pic.twitter.com/kMj0OamaOl
— Faisal Karim Kundi (@fkkundi) November 7, 2025
The governor said that the CM should exercise restraint and “place the safety and unity of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa above partisan posturing.”
Sohail Afridi recently became the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, appointed by Imran Khan after the resignation of Ali Amin Gandapur. At 35 years old, Afridi is seen as one of the prominent young leaders in KP’s politics. Born in Bara tehsil of Khyber district, Afridi has tribal roots, which reflects in his aggressive stance against the Pakistani military.
Accusations of killings and enforced disappearances of civilians by Pakistan’s army in KP and Balochistan are not new. Local people have been raising the issues for decades, which have sparked province-wide protests and movements. The same concerns have been pointed out by a number of regional political parties on several occasions.
Over 200 people have been killed so far in the fresh Pakistan-Afghanistan conflict. Last week, Pakistan carried out airstrikes in Afghanistan, targeting camps of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
Over the past week, both sides have claimed significant casualties. Reuters reports that Pakistan has killed more than 200 fighters from the Afghan Taliban and its allies, while Afghanistan claims it has killed 58 Pakistani soldiers.
