What happened
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif convened leaders of parliamentary parties in Islamabad on Wednesday to brief them on the crisis in neighbouring Iran and Pakistan’s military campaign in Afghanistan, his office said.
The Prime Minister’s Office said participants “emphasized the need for national unity, consensus and cohesion in the current circumstances.” According to the PMO statement, the parliamentarians appreciated Pakistan’s diplomatic efforts for peace and stressed the need to accelerate them, offered suggestions on the government’s future course of action, and “reaffirmed their strong resolve to eliminate terrorism from the country.”
Representatives of major parties, including the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, the Pakistan Peoples Party, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, attended the briefing, according to Arab News, which said the meeting was called to update party leaders on the security situation and Pakistan’s diplomatic outreach as regional tensions spread.
Army chief’s border visit
Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, the chief of defence forces and army chief, visited Wana in South Waziristan the same day to review the security situation and troops’ operational preparedness along the Afghan border, the military’s media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations, said.
“Peace could only prevail between both sides if the Afghan Taliban renounced their support for terrorism and terrorist organizations,” Munir was quoted as saying by ISPR. He said the use of Afghan soil by militant outfits to launch attacks against Pakistan was unacceptable and vowed that “all necessary measures” would be taken to neutralise cross-border threats. He was briefed on ongoing intelligence-based operations and on Operation Ghazab lil-Haq, the name Pakistan has given to its campaign against Afghan forces.
Why it matters
The all-party briefing and the army chief’s frontline visit signalled that the government was seeking a broad political front as it simultaneously manages the Afghan campaign and the economic fallout of the wider regional war. Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the same day that Pakistani forces had killed 481 Afghan Taliban operatives and injured more than 696 since clashes began, destroyed 226 checkposts and captured 35, and destroyed 198 tanks, armoured vehicles and artillery guns.
Arab News reported that Pakistan had rejected an Afghan signal that it was open to dialogue, saying it would continue military operations until its objectives were achieved. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had told Shehbaz that Ankara would help reinstate a ceasefire, as covered in KhabarWire’s report on the Shehbaz-Erdogan phone call.
What is still uncertain
It was not clear what specific course of action the parliamentary leaders recommended or whether the briefing would produce a formal political consensus. Neither the government nor the military set a timeline or stated conditions under which Operation Ghazab lil-Haq would end, and it remained unclear whether any mediation offer would be accepted.
Sources & reporting notes
This is a synthesis of published material, not eyewitness reporting. Sources were reviewed on 2026-03-05.
- Arab News PK — Pakistan PM convenes political leaders to discuss Iran crisis, regional tensionsPublished 4 March 2026 · PMO statement, list of attending parties, the 481-killed figure and the rejected Afghan dialogue signal.
- Radio Pakistan — Pakistan Army continuing action against Afghan Taliban, Fitna Al KhawarijPublished 4 March 2026 · The state broadcaster's account of the ongoing Operation Ghazab lil-Haq campaign and operational sectors.
