Pakistan's military launched attacks on civilian areas in Afghanistan's Kunar and Paktika provinces, resulting in three deaths and four injuries, as reported by Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid on Monday. This incident threatens to reignite hostilities between the neighboring countries, which experienced their worst conflict in years in February.
The strikes occurred after Pakistan's Ministry of Information warned it might target militants within Afghanistan following two deadly attacks on its security forces. The Kohat attack on a police facility, which killed at least 21 people, was blamed on militants allegedly based in Afghanistan. Pakistan has consistently accused Kabul of harboring armed groups that conduct cross-border attacks, a charge the Afghan Taliban government denies, attributing the violence to Pakistan's internal issues.
The Afghan officials, including Kunar provincial spokesperson Farid Dehqan and Taliban deputy spokesperson Hamdullah Fitrat, confirmed the attacks, stating that a house in Nurgal district was hit around 4 AM local time, killing three family members and injuring four. Fitrat also reported that two locations in Paktika province's Barmal district were bombed, destroying a shop and an unoccupied house, though with no casualties. While Pakistani security officials claimed 28 militants were killed in the strikes, Afghan authorities maintained the casualties were civilians.
