Pakistan said early Thursday that it had carried out airstrikes on 10 sites in Afghanistan that it said were used to launch drone attacks against Pakistan a day earlier, marking a sharp escalation between the neighbors that threatens mediation efforts by regional powers.
The announcement by Information Minister Attaullah Tarar in a post on X came after officials said Afghanistan’s Taliban forces had fired eight drones and shelled Pakistani border posts after Pakistani troops foiled what they described as a cross-border infiltration attempt by militants.
Pakistani officials said Wednesday that security forces had neutralized eight rudimentary drones allegedly launched by the Afghan Taliban before they could enter the northwestern city of Kohat and the border town of Torkham. The UN mission in Afghanistan confirmed the civilian casualties, and Kabul formally protested the attack. Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesperson for Afghanistan’s Taliban government, denied Wednesday that Afghan Taliban forces had carried out any attacks.
In Monday’s airstrikes, Pakistan’s Information Ministry said 28 militants were killed, while Afghan authorities said at least three civilians died and four others were wounded. Earlier reporting noted: Kabul-Islamabad tensions soar: Pakistan strikes 10 sites in Afghanistan after drone attacks Taliban government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid had denied on Wednesday that Afghan Taliban forces carried out attacks against Pakistan. Earlier reporting noted: Pakistan said early Thursday that it had carried out airstrikes on 10 sites in Afghanistan that it said were used to launch drone attacks against Pakistan.
The conflicting statements came two days after Pakistani fighter jets struck sites in eastern Afghanistan that Islamabad said were militant hideouts. All the drones were shot down and caused no damage, authorities said, adding the action underscored Pakistan’s round-the-clock vigilance and readiness. On the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar expressed concern about what he said was the presence of more than two dozen anti-Pakistani militant groups in Afghanistan. Earlier reporting noted: Pakistan’s information minister Attaullah Tarar said the strikes targeted sites linked to what Pakistan described as attempted attacks from Afghan territory. He said the strikes were “deliberate, precise, calibrated, and proportionate” and limited to military objectives.
