Earlier in the day, Alireza Marhamati, the deputy governor for security and law enforcement of the Iranian southeastern province of Sistan and Baluchestan, said sounds of explosions were heard in several areas of Saravan County in Iran's province bordering Pakistan.
"This morning, Pakistan undertook a series of highly coordinated and specifically targeted precision military strikes against terrorist hideouts in Siestan-o-Baluchistan province of Iran. A number of terrorists were killed during the Intelligence-based operation – codenamed *‘Marg Bar Sarmachar'*," the ministry said in a statement on the website.
In the past several years, Islamabad has "consistently shared its serious concerns about the safe havens and sanctuaries enjoyed by Pakistani origin terrorists calling themselves *Sarmachars* on the ungoverned spaces inside Iran," the ministry said, adding that Tehran has not taken enough action against them.
The ministry also said Islamabad "fully respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Islamic Republic of Iran," adding that "the sole objective of today’s act was in pursuit of Pakistan’s own security and national interest, which is paramount and cannot be compromised."
Before the government's official announcement was published, a senior intelligence source not authorized to give information to the media told AFP that the attack was carried out against "anti-Pakistan militant groups."
"I can only confirm that we have conducted strikes against anti-Pakistan militant groups that were targeted inside Iran," the source told the agency, adding that the government would provide official information in a statement later in the morning.
On Tuesday, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched ballistic missiles and drones at a base of terrorist group Jaish al-Adl in Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan region in retaliation for terrorist attacks on its own territory. This was the first missile strike by the Iranian armed forces on Pakistani territory. Pakistan strongly condemned the Iranian attack and on Wednesday recalled its ambassador from Tehran, also indicating that the Iranian ambassador would not be able to continue his diplomatic mission in Islamabad for some time.