Afghanistan says it struck militant targets inside Pakistan
Afghanistan’s defence ministry said on Friday that it had carried out air strikes the previous night against what it described as hideouts used by ISIS-K and “hostile intelligence circles” inside Pakistan, hitting sites in the border provinces of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Kabul did not report casualty figures. Pakistan rejected the account, calling the claims “false as usual” and repeating its accusation that the Taliban government shelters armed groups that stage attacks across the frontier.
The exchange marks a further escalation in a relationship that has deteriorated sharply this year. A fragile ceasefire collapsed after both governments accused each other of violations, and the United Nations has reported at least 372 Afghan civilian deaths and nearly 400 injuries from cross-border fighting in early 2026. Pakistan struck inside Afghanistan the previous week in an operation Kabul said killed 13 people, including 11 children. China-brokered mediation has so far failed to hold.
That Afghanistan is now publicly claiming offensive strikes on Pakistani soil — rather than only reporting incoming fire — signals a shift toward open retaliation. Each side’s framing serves a purpose: Kabul casts the operation as self-defence against threats it says originate in Pakistan, while Islamabad’s denial avoids acknowledging that armed groups operate from its territory. With the ceasefire broken and mediation stalled, the risk of a wider confrontation between the two neighbours is rising.