Cross-border tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan have intensified after overnight Pakistani airstrikes and military operations reportedly left dozens dead, prompting strong condemnation from Afghanistan’s Taliban government.
Afghan officials said at least 36 civilians were killed and more than 160 others injured in strikes carried out by Pakistani forces late Sunday in eastern Afghanistan. Kabul described the attacks as a “cowardly act of aggression” and an “act of brutality.”
According to Afghanistan’s deputy government spokesperson Hamdullah Fitrat, one strike hit a home in Chamkani district of Paktia province, killing an elderly man and a child. He alleged that when local residents gathered to rescue survivors, the area was struck a second time, killing 28 people and injuring 158 others.
In a separate strike in Paktika province’s Giyan district, six civilians, most of them women and children, were reportedly killed after another home was hit. Afghan authorities also said a residential property in Kunar province was damaged, although no casualties were reported there.
Pakistan presented a different account of the operation. Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said Pakistani security forces conducted ground operations along the border before launching strikes against militant hideouts and safe havens, claiming 29 militants were killed. Islamabad said the operation was launched in response to a series of militant attacks inside Pakistan.
The military action came shortly after an attack on the Pakistan Rangers’ regional headquarters in Karachi, where three soldiers were killed. Pakistani security forces said they killed three attackers and arrested another suspect, whom they identified as an Afghan national. The militant group Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a splinter faction of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility for the Karachi attack.
Pakistan has repeatedly blamed the Pakistani Taliban and affiliated militant groups for a sharp rise in attacks on its security forces. While the TTP is separate from Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban, the two groups maintain close ideological and operational ties.
The latest escalation follows weeks of renewed military exchanges between the two countries. Pakistani forces carried out similar airstrikes inside Afghanistan less than three weeks ago, ending a brief period of relative calm after months of cross-border hostilities.
Since February, hundreds of people have reportedly been killed as both countries exchanged retaliatory military strikes. Several rounds of diplomatic talks have failed to secure a lasting ceasefire. China also hosted negotiations earlier this year, with both sides agreeing in principle to avoid further escalation and pursue a peaceful resolution, though the latest violence highlights the fragility of those efforts.
