On 9th October clashes broke out between Afghan and Pakistani soldiers following an airstrike in Kabul by Pakistan. Afghan forces responded with retaliatory attacks on 11th October, targetting multiple Pakistani military sites along the shared border. They seized several border checkpoints in the neighbouring country, killing 58 soldiers, wounding 30 others and destroying 20 outposts, according to Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid.
He further conveyed that 9 Taliban combatants were killed while 16-18 individuals were injured. On the other hand, Pakistani Army claimed that over 200 Taliban fighters and their affiliates were slain in the fierce overnight battle and added that 23 of its soldiers also died.
It was declared that hundreds of Taliban and its affiliated fighters had been wounded while the number stood at 29 on their side. 19 Afghan border stations were taken by its forces and Afghan Taliban members stationed there were either killed or escaped. The assertions were made by Pakistani media which cited Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
According to reports, artillery and small arms were utilised in the Kunar-Kurram region by both the Pakistani and Afghan sides. Mujahid mentioned that Saudi Arabia and Qatar intervened for mediation after which the operation was suspended at midnight.
Afghanistan accuses Pakistan of harbouring terroists
Mujahid charged that ISIS-K (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria-Khorasan Province) had regrouped in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan and was utilising it as a base to launch operations in surrounding nations. He warned that any infringement on Afghan sovereignty “will not go unanswered” and asked Pakistan to turn over suspected ISIS-K terrorists who were hiding on its territory.
Taliban deputy spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat accused the Pakistani military of disseminating false information and supporting terrorist hideouts along the border, calling the strikes a reaction to “provocations.”
During a news conference in New Delhi, Afghanistan’s foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi expressed that “we have no problems” with the people and leadership of Pakistan. However, he highlighted that “some groups in Pakistan are trying to spoil the situation.” Afghanistan has responded to the infringement because it has a right to protect its borders and territory.
Mohsin Naqvi, Pakistan’s interior minister, threatened that his nation’s soldiers would retaliate “with a stone for every brick” and alleged that the Afghan attacks were “unprovoked” and that civilians were shot at. “The firing by Afghan forces on civilian populations is a blatant violation of international laws. Afghanistan is playing a game of fire and blood,” he wrote on social media.
Pakistan has accused the Afghan Taliban of allowing the TTP (Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or Pakistan Taliban) to function from their territory. The latter is charged with opposing the Islamabad administration to impose Sharia Law in the Islamic Republic. This allegations always been rejected by the Afghan Taliban regime.
Exchange of fire between the two countries
Hundreds of vehicles transporting supplies are stuck on both sides of the border as a result of the closure of the two main crossings between Pakistan and Afghanistan, Torkham in the north and Chaman in the south. At least three small crossings were also blocked at Kharlachi, Angoor Adda and Ghulam Khan.
Firing was reported to have occurred at Angoor Adda, Bajaur, Kurram, Dir, Chitral, and Baramcha, among other places along the Pakistani-Afghan border, according to a security source, reported BBC.
According to a Kurram district police spokesman stationed close to Zero Point, heavy weapons fire started from the Afghan side at around 22:00 local time (17:00 GMT). He added that numerous sites near the border have reported heavy shooting.
The Taliban leadership in Afghanistan accused Pakistan of violating its “sovereign territory” in Kabul after two deafening explosions were reported in the city late on 9th October. According to the Taliban Defence Ministry, Pakistan bombed a civilian market in the south-east Afghan border province of Paktika. Locals confirmed that several stores had been demolished.
The most recent escalation took place during Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi’s historic week-long visit to India which was his first since the Taliban regained control of the country in 2021. Furthermore, the embassy in Kabul was closed four years ago but New Delhi announced it would reopen as part of a diplomatic thaw.
