Afghan Taliban terrorists are killed by Pakistani forces in a border escalation

On the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, Pakistan has prevented a “attempted Afghan aggression.” According to Pakistani security sources, fighting was still going on on Friday in the Gulistan region of the border, where multiple Afghan Taliban militants were killed in sporadic gunfire. Neither of the participating nations has provided an official confirmation.

In response to Pakistani airstrikes on ten Afghan targets, the Afghan government declared on Thursday that it will provide a “suitable response.” Pakistani Information Minister Attaullah Tarar stated on Thursday that the strikes were in reaction to a “deliberate and unlawful entry into Pakistan by drones” on Wednesday.

Tarar said in a post on his X account that Pakistan’s aerial and drone attacks hit “terrorist hideouts and support infrastructure including drone launching and storage sites”. He also shared a video claiming to show the military strikes on the Afghan installations. According to Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Afghan government, the airstrikes were directed toward the provinces of Kandahar, Paktia, and Khost.

Officials from the Taliban denied that their government attacked Pakistan on Wednesday with drones. The airstrikes on Thursday took place in the midst of escalating hostilities between the erstwhile allies over attacks by armed groups in Pakistan that led to their worst conflict in years in February.

Afghanistan’s administration disputes harboring anti-Pakistani armed organizations and claims the attacks are Pakistan’s domestic issue, while Islamabad accuses Kabul of providing sanctuary to fighters who carry out cross-border operations. The escalation jeopardizes attempts by Saudi Arabia, China, Turkiye, and Qatar to mediate a long-term settlement between the two neighbors.