Pakistani air strikes on targets in Afghanistan have killed at least four people, according to the Afghan Taliban government, which vowed to deliver an “appropriate response” to the attacks.
Pakistan said on Thursday that its forces conducted air strikes on 10 locations in Afghanistan allegedly used to store and launch drones involved in cross-border attacks against Pakistan.
Afghan Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the strikes targeted locations in Kandahar, Paktia and Khost provinces.
A resident of Kandahar city told AFP that a jet was heard overhead before a major explosion and fire erupted in the city centre.
Pakistan’s Information Minister, Attaullah Tarar, described the strikes as “deliberate, precise, calibrated, and proportionate”, saying they were restricted to identified military targets linked to attempted attacks against Pakistan.
Tarar also condemned what he described as a “deliberate and unlawful incursion into Pakistan by drones” on Wednesday, calling it a violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Taliban officials, however, denied that the Afghan government had launched drones against Pakistan.
The latest strikes come amid renewed tensions between the two neighbours over attacks by armed groups operating along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
Islamabad has repeatedly accused the Taliban authorities of allowing militants to operate from Afghan territory and launch attacks into Pakistan. Kabul has rejected the allegations, maintaining that militant violence inside Pakistan is an internal matter.
Tensions intensified after an attack on a police facility in northwestern Pakistan last week killed at least 21 people. A faction of the Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack and a subsequent gun battle.
Earlier on Monday, Afghan officials said Pakistani air strikes on three locations in northeastern Afghanistan killed three civilians in Kunar province. Pakistan said the operation killed 28 “terrorists”.
The latest escalation threatens ongoing mediation efforts by China, Türkiye, Qatar and Saudi Arabia aimed at reducing tensions and securing a lasting peace between the two countries.
Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have remained strained since their worst fighting in years erupted in February, despite a period of relative calm lasting nearly three months.
