Pakistan launches fresh strikes on Kabul, bombs fuel depot near Kandahar airport

Pakistan carried out fresh airstrikes in Afghanistan targeting Kabul, Kandahar, Paktia and Paktika, with Taliban authorities claiming civilian homes were destroyed and at least four people were killed.

In Short

• Pakistan conducted airstrikes in multiple Afghan regions including Kabul and Kandahar
• Taliban accuse Pakistan of civilian deaths and destruction of homes during Ramadan
• Cross-border clashes have killed at least seven civilians recently in eastern Afghanistan

Pakistan has carried out fresh airstrikes in Afghanistan, targeting Kabul, Kandahar, Paktia, Paktika and other areas, with the Taliban administration alleging that civilian homes were destroyed and women and children were among those killed. The Taliban also accused Pakistan of bombing a fuel depot belonging to private airline Kam Air near Afghanistan’s Kandahar airport.

The strikes, which came during the last ten days of the month of Ramadan and ahead of Eid, were condemned by the Islamic Emirate as “cruel aggression” that it said would not go unanswered.

According to Taliban authorities, the Pakistani military again carried out airstrikes in several Afghan regions, destroying civilian houses in some locations and hitting empty desert areas in others. The Taliban said the attacks resulted in the deaths of civilians, including women and children, and described the bombardment as a violation of humanitarian and moral principles.

Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said the company supplies fuel to civilian airlines as well as United Nations aircraft. He added that the attack came as tensions between the two neighbouring countries escalated again despite diplomatic efforts aimed at easing the conflict.

The latest violence follows fighting that erupted last month when Pakistan conducted airstrikes inside Afghanistan, which Islamabad said targeted militant strongholds. Kabul condemned those operations as a violation of its sovereignty and launched retaliatory attacks, leading to cross-border clashes along the roughly 2,600 km border between the two countries.

Before the most recent strikes, neither side had reported Pakistani airstrikes in recent days and ground fighting along the border had appeared to subside. Pakistan’s military did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the latest claims.

Militancy remains a major point of contention between the two countries. Islamabad accuses Kabul of providing safe haven to militants responsible for attacks inside Pakistan, while the Taliban denies the allegation and says militancy is Pakistan’s internal problem. Mediation efforts by China have attempted to calm tensions, with Reuters reporting that Beijing had urged both sides to end the violence. Pakistan’s foreign ministry spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi said Islamabad and Beijing were engaged in a dialogue process regarding Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, the Taliban government said four members of the same family, including two children, were killed by Pakistani artillery and mortar fire in eastern Afghanistan. The deaths reportedly occurred early on Thursday in the village of Sadqo in Khost province.

Deputy government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat said the victims included a man, a woman and two children—one girl and one boy—while three other children were wounded. The provincial governor’s office confirmed the same casualty figures.

These deaths bring the reported toll to seven people killed in Afghanistan since Tuesday in cross-border clashes, according to authorities in Kabul. Earlier, Fitrat said three civilians were killed by Pakistani shelling in the border province of Paktia.

Pakistan maintains that it does not deliberately target civilians. In Islamabad, foreign ministry spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi said Pakistani forces conduct “targeted operations with due diligence” and ensure that no civilians are harmed. However, casualty claims from both sides remain difficult to independently verify.

The United Nations mission in Afghanistan said that 56 civilians, including 24 children, were killed in Pakistani military operations between February 26 and March 5. Pakistani officials have confirmed that about 12 soldiers were killed and 27 wounded in the latest fighting, while the Taliban claims its forces killed more than 150.

The fighting intensified on February 26 when Afghanistan launched an offensive along the border in retaliation for earlier Pakistani airstrikes targeting the Pakistan Taliban, just two days before the United States and Israel attacked Iran, widening fears of a broader regional conflict.

- Ends
With agency inputs.