Iran on Tuesday attacked alleged bases of militant group Jaish al-Adl in Pakistan’s Balochistan province using missiles and drones, the Associated Press reported.

The strikes killed two children and injured three others, Pakistan said.

Founded in 2012, Jaish al-Adl, or the “Army of Justice”, is a Sunni militant group that is claimed to have been responsible for several attacks on the Iranian border police.

Islamabad described Tehran’s strikes on Pakistani territory as an “unprovoked violation” of its airspace.

Citing Iran’s state-run media, AP reported that the country’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard carried out the attacks using missiles and drones in the mountains of Pakistan’s Balochistan province.

Following this, Pakistan’s foreign affairs ministry issued a statement calling the attacks “completely unacceptable” and warning of “serious consequences”. It said that it had lodged a protest with Tehran, and that the head of the Iranian mission in Islamabad had been summoned and told that “the responsibility for the consequences will lie squarely with Iran”.

“Pakistan has always said terrorism is a common threat to all countries in the region that requires coordinated action,” read the statement. “Such unilateral acts are not in conformity with good neighbourly relations and can seriously undermine bilateral trust and confidence.”

On Wednesday, Islamabad also expelled the Iranian ambassador to Pakistan and recalled its envoy from Tehran.

“We have also informed them that Pakistan has decided to recall its ambassador from Iran and that the Iranian Ambassador to Pakistan who is currently visiting Iran may not return for the time being,” Pakistan’s foreign ministry said. “We have also decided to suspend all high level visits which were ongoing or were planned between Pakistan and Iran in coming days.”

Pakistan and Iran have locked horns over Jaish al-Adl’s actions earlier as well. In 2019, the Revolutionary Guard said that Islamabad should go after the armed group before Tehran takes its “revenge”, reported Al Jazeera.

The attack in Pakistan follows Iran’s strikes in northern Iraq on Monday against what it claimed were Israeli “spy headquarters”. On the same day, Tehran also launched attacks against targets allegedly linked to the Islamic State terrorist organisation in northern Syria.

The Revolutionary Guard had said that it carried out strikes on the headquarters of Mossad, the Israeli intelligence agency, in Iraq’s Kurdistan region. In another statement, it said that it has destroyed “terrorist operations” in Syria.

The strikes on Monday came against the backdrop of the Islamic State claiming responsibility for two suicide bombings near the burial site of military commander Qasem Soleimani in the Iranian city of Kerman.

A large crowd had gathered on January 4 to commemorate Soleimani, who was killed in 2020 in a drone strike by the United States, when the two bombs exploded in 20 minutes.