Pakistan Airstrikes in Afghanistan Spark Deadly Cross-Border Tensions
Kabul reports 9 civilians killed, including women and children, in strikes targeting militant hideouts, while Pakistan claims only militants were hit.
Pakistan launched airstrikes in two Afghan provinces overnight, targeting militant hideouts, both countries confirmed Thursday. Afghanistan's government stated that the bombings killed nine civilians, including women and children, and wounded 11 others. Pakistan's Ministry of Information asserted that its strikes were aimed at militant bases and that initial reports indicated 22 militants were killed. The casualty figures from either side could not be independently verified.
These strikes occur amid ongoing cross-border confrontations and follow a pattern of Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan since tensions escalated earlier this year. The two neighboring nations have long-standing disputes regarding militant activity along their shared border.
The United Nations Mission in Afghanistan reported last week that over 1,100 civilian deaths and injuries have been documented in Afghanistan from cross-border violence this year. Pakistan maintains that it targets militants operating from Afghan territory and denies striking civilians, while Afghanistan rejects harboring militants.
Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesperson for Afghanistan's Taliban government, stated that the airstrikes impacted civilian homes in the southern Helmand province and the eastern Kunar province, destroying three houses. He condemned the action as an act of aggression that violates international principles.
Pakistan's Ministry of Information described the airstrikes as "well planned and calibrated" and executed with "precision and accuracy" against militant hideouts and camps. The ministry added that large caches of weapons and ammunition were destroyed and affirmed that the campaign "will continue at full pace to wipe out" the threat of militants. Pakistan accuses Afghanistan's Taliban government of permitting militants, particularly the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), to operate from Afghan soil and conduct attacks within Pakistan. The TTP is allied with, but separate from, the Afghan Taliban, who have governed Afghanistan since their takeover in 2021.