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KABUL: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) officials have asked Afghanistan to apologize for the statement issued after a deadly bombing in Kabul, insisting that the cricketing ties between the two countries will not revive until Afghanistan does not apologize formally.
PCB Chairman Shahryar Khan made the remarks in Lahore on Thursday and claimed that the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) chairman has expressed regrets for the remarks.
The Afghanistan Cricket Board in a statement said “By killing innocent and destitute people today, the enemies of Afghanistan’s peace and stability showed that they are not worthy of friendship and will not change thier stance against Afghans.”
The statement was issued shortly after a deadly bombing hit Kabul city that left over 150 people dead and hundreds more wounded.
The statement further added that “In light of the findings of security services and calls by the Afghan nation, the ACB hereby cancel all kinds of cricket matches and initial mutual relationship agreement with the Pakistan Cricket Board.”
“No agreement of friendly matches and mutual relationship agreement is possible with a country where terrorists are housed and provided safe havens,” ACB added.
In the meantime, Khan has said the cricket board of Pakistan has taken a position that until the Afghanistan Cricket Board apologise in public, we should not be reviving any cricketing ties with them.
Tensions between the cricket boards of the two countries have escalated at a time when pressures seems to grow on Pakistan for allowing the terrorist networks, specifically the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani terrorist network to use its soil for carrying out attacks in Afghanistan.
The US Department of State also issued a report earlier stating that
“Afghanistan, in particular, continued to experience aggressive and coordinated attacks by the Afghan Taliban, including the affiliated Haqqani Network (HQN) and other insurgent and terrorist groups.”
The Department of State also added that a number of these attacks were planned and launched from safe havens in Pakistan.
