Pakistan launched airstrikes and sent ground troops into Afghan provinces along its western border on Sunday, killing dozens of civilians, officials say. The Taliban government condemned the “cowardly act” and called it “a crime and atrocity”, with at least 100 people killed or wounded, Taliban officials told BBC Pashto.
Pakistan’s information minister, Attaullah Tarar, said 29 militants were killed in strikes targeted at their hideouts, describing the operation as a response to “recent terrorist attacks against innocent people”. But Afghanistan’s Taliban government says the strikes hit civilian homes, with casualties concentrated in Mandikhel, a village in the Paktika province.
“Pakistan launched airstrikes into Afghanistan killing dozens of civilians as Taliban condemned the 'cowardly act'.”
The attack came a day after three members of the Sindh Rangers, a Pakistani paramilitary force, were killed at their headquarters in Karachi, according to Pakistan’s military. Three militants also died in that suicide attack, and Pakistani officials said they arrested a fourth, who was an Afghan. Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a splinter faction of the TTP – the Pakistan Taliban – claimed responsibility. Both the TTP and Jamaat-ul-Ahrar are banned in Pakistan and by the United Nations.
Pakistan has long accused Afghanistan of harbouring terrorists who carry out attacks on its soil, a claim the Taliban government rejects. The strikes targeted provinces Paktia, Paktika and Kunar. Intermittent border clashes and airstrikes have killed dozens in recent months. In February, clashes left dozens dead. In March, a Pakistani strike on a drug rehabilitation centre in Kabul killed hundreds. Earlier in June, Pakistan launched deadly air strikes that killed 26 militants; Afghanistan’s Taliban government said 13 people, mostly children, were also killed.
The two countries had agreed to a ceasefire last October, but as with past truce deals, that ceasefire has since fallen apart. The BBC has not independently confirmed the casualty figures claimed by both governments.