Pakistani airstrikes kill 9 in Afghanistan, Taliban say

Pakistani airstrikes on Afghanistan hit three houses on Thursday, killing nine people, the Afghan Taliban government said, while Islamabad said the strikes killed 22 “terrorists” after targeting their hideouts, as fighting between the neighbours escalated following three months of relative calm.

Those killed in the strikes in Afghanistan’s Kunar and Helmand provinces included women and children, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said on X. Eleven people were also injured, he said.

“We condemn this act as an aggression and crime in violation of all accepted principles,” Mujahid said.

Pakistan’s information ministry, however, said the strikes were based on “credible intelligence” and targeted terrorist hideouts at two locations.

“Targets were destroyed with precision and initial reports suggest killing of twenty two terrorists,” the ministry said in a statement on X.

“Large quantities of weapons and ammunition stored at these hideouts was also destroyed,” it said.

Reuters could not independently verify either side’s account.

Tensions between the neighbours have risen following a militant attack on a police facility in northwestern Pakistan last month that killed 24 people. The attack rekindled tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan, which engaged in their worst fighting in years in February.

The two former allies have increasingly clashed over militancy, with Islamabad accusing Kabul of harbouring militants who stage cross-border attacks. The Taliban government denies the allegation and says militancy is an internal Pakistani problem.

Islamabad has carried out multiple airstrikes on Afghanistan over the past fortnight, saying they targeted militant camps and killed fighters.

Kabul has maintained that the strikes killed civilians.

Afghanistan’s Defence Ministry on Sunday said its forces had killed 28 fighters and wounded 32 after a group it said included Islamic State militants crossed from Pakistan.

Islamabad rejected the allegations.