Pakistani Airstrikes and Ground Offensive Kill Dozens in Afghanistan

Pakistan launched airstrikes and a ground offensive into several Afghan border provinces on Sunday, leaving dozens dead and escalating tensions between the two neighbouring countries.

Afghanistan’s Taliban-led government strongly condemned the military action, describing it as a “cowardly act” and calling it a “crime and atrocity.” Taliban officials told local media that more than 100 people had been killed or injured, including civilians, although those figures have not been independently verified.

Pakistan, however, said the operation targeted militant hideouts. Information Minister Attaullah Tarar stated that 29 militants were killed during the strikes, adding that the military action was carried out in response to recent terrorist attacks against Pakistani civilians.

According to Pakistani authorities, the operation targeted suspected militant bases in the Afghan provinces of Paktia, Paktika and Kunar. Taliban officials insisted that civilian homes were struck, with the village of Mandikhel in Paktika reportedly suffering the highest number of casualties.

The latest violence follows a deadly attack a day earlier in Karachi, where three members of Pakistan’s Sindh Rangers were killed in a suicide assault on their headquarters. Pakistani officials said three attackers were also killed, while a fourth suspect, identified as an Afghan national, was arrested.

The militant group Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a faction linked to the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility for the Karachi attack. Both groups are banned in Pakistan and have been designated as terrorist organisations by the United Nations.

Pakistan has repeatedly accused Afghanistan of allowing militant groups to operate from its territory and launch attacks across the border. The Taliban administration has consistently denied those allegations, instead accusing Pakistan of carrying out cross-border attacks that have killed Afghan civilians.

Relations between the two countries have remained tense despite a ceasefire agreement reached in October last year. That truce has since collapsed, with both sides exchanging accusations over repeated border clashes and military operations.

Violence along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border has intensified in recent months. Earlier this year, clashes claimed dozens of lives, while previous Pakistani airstrikes also resulted in significant casualties, including civilians, according to Afghan authorities.

The latest escalation raises fresh concerns over regional stability, as both governments continue to blame each other for the growing insecurity along their shared border.