CLAIM

Viral video of Afghanistan Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani warning of “decisive action” by Taliban leadership against Pakistan

RATING JUSTIFICATION

The iVerify Pakistan team investigated this content and determined that it is misleading.

To reach this conclusion, iVerify Pakistan conducted a Google reverse image search to trace the original source.

Multiple Indian and Afghan users on social media platform X have been sharing a video since February 22, 2026, allegedly showing Afghan Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani warning Pakistan of “decisive action” by Taliban leadership. However, the clip is old from October 2025 and is not linked to the recent escalation.

On Feb 22, Islamabad launched strikes on militant targets in Afghanistan in what it called a retaliatory operation against groups responsible for recent suicide bombings in Pakistan.

According to the information ministry, the strikes involved “intelligence-based selective targeting of seven terrorist camps and hideouts” along the border. It added that it had “conclusive evidence” that earlier attacks on Pakistani soil were carried out by khwarij — the term for the Pakistani Taliban — acting on instructions from “their Afghanistan-based leadership and handlers”.

On the other hand, the Afghan Taliban said women and children were among the dozens killed and injured in the attacks, reported Reuters. The Afghan defence ministry also vowed to respond.

HOW IT STARTED

On Feb 22, a verified Indian account on X shared a video of Haqqani with the following caption: “Final Ultimatums are over! Time to hit back! Khalifa Sirajuddin Haqqani, minister of interior, says if our elders decide to take serious action, there will be no trace of Pakistan left.”

The post garnered 168,900 views.

Another Indian user on X shared the same video in a post that racked up 159,700 views. “Sirajuddin Haqqani, Afghanistan’s interior minister, said ‘Final ultimatums are over’ and warned that if senior leadership decides on serious action, there would be ‘no trace of Pakistan left’,” reads the caption.

The video was shared by several other Indian users too, as can be seen here, here, here, here, here and here.

Afghan users shared the video as well, as can be seen here, here, here, here and here. Digital Afghan media outlet Daily Kabul News also posted the clip on X.

METHODOLOGY

A fact-check was initiated to determine the veracity of the claim due to its virality and keen public interest in Pakistan-Afghanistan ties.

A keyword search was conducted to corroborate whether any such incident was reported by mainstream, credible international or Afghan media outlets, but did not yield any results.

A Google reverse image search was conducted to trace the video’s source, which yielded an Instagram post by Indian media outlet The Asian Chronicle dated November 1, 2025.

The video was captioned: “After talks between Afghanistan and Pakistan failed to yield any concrete results, Afghan Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani issued a strong warning to Islamabad amid provocative statements by Pakistani ministers.

“The people of Afghanistan may have internal problems, but they are united against foreign aggression. If you bring your problems into Afghanistan and create turmoil here, this mistake will cost you dearly, warned Haqqani, also leader of the Haqqani Network and a senior Taliban leader.”

The clip was credited to the X account of Afghanistan’s Tolo News.

Subsequently, a reverse image search, conducted to trace the original video posted by Tolo News, yielded an X post by the media outlet dated October 30, 2025.

The post shared the same video with the caption: “Khalifa Sirajuddin Haqqani, Minister of Interior of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, referring to the ongoing negotiations between Afghanistan and Pakistan, called on Pakistan, saying, ‘These are your own problems, why are they being imposed on us?’

“He further said that with regard to the TTP issue, Afghanistan has repeatedly suggested solutions to Pakistan, urging them to resolve the matter within their own country.”

The same video was also shared by state-owned RTA Afghanistan in a YouTube post dated October 31, 2025.

Moreover, a keyword search yielded a news report by the Afghan Islamic Press dated Oct 30, 2025, with the headline, “Pakistan should address its own issues instead of imposing on Afghanistan: Sirajuddin Haqqani”.

It quoted Haqqani as saying that “Pakistan should address its issues within its home and not impose its problems on Afghanistan, and if anyone invaded the Afghan soil, Afghans would stand strongly against them and defend their territorial integrity”.

His comments had come after talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan failed to bear fruit following negotiations. The talks were initiated after tensions between the neighbours had exploded into an open conflict in October last year, with the Kabul regime launching attacks against Islamabad and the latter responding with aggression.

Haqqani’s remarks on Oct 30, 2025, were also carried by other news outlets such as Afghanistan International, NDTV and News on Air.

FACT-CHECK STATUS: MISLEADING

The claim that a viral video shows Afghanistan’s Sirajuddin Haqqani warning Pakistan of “decisive action” is misleading.

The video is old, from October 2025, and is not linked to the recent escalation between the neighbouring countries.

EVIDENCE AND REFERENCES:

November 1, 2025, Instagram post:
https://www.instagram.com/reels/DQfzJ8DE5sa/

October 30, 2025, X post:
https://x.com/TOLONewsEnglish/status/1983911701553746388

October 31, 2025, YouTube video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wgd-sIIt7ng

October 30, 2025, Afghan Islamic Press report:
https://www.afghanislamicpress.com/en/news/104995

October 30, 2025, Afghanistan International report:
https://www.afintl.com/en/202510302482

October 30, 2025, NDTV report:
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/this-will-cost-you-dearly-taliban-minister-sirajuddin-haqqani-slams-pakistan-for-border-turmoil-9547687

October 30, 2025, News on Air report:
https://www.newsonair.gov.in/afghanistan-warns-pakistan-against-any-act-of-aggression/