Taliban claims to kill 12 Pakistani soldiers in ‘retaliatory’ cross-border clashes

Afghan troops reportedly moving along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border

Clashes broke out along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border late Saturday, according to the Afghan Ministry of Defense, as Taliban-led Afghan forces took control of several Pakistan Army outposts along the Durand Line, including the volatile Kunar and Helmand provinces, marking a dramatic escalation in border tensions.

“Taliban forces captured many outposts of the Pakistan Army in Kunar and Helmand provinces along the Durand Line,” an Afghan Defense official said in a statement.

The current border clashes have resulted in the death of at least 12 Pakistani soldiers and many injuries, sources told TOLOnews. Heavy clashes were reported in the Aryub Zazi district of Paktia and in the Shakij, Bibi Jani and Salehan districts of the Bahramcha district.

Security sources in Pakistan claimed that its soldiers retaliated with ‘full force’ for attacks in which they claimed Afghans opened fire without any reason.

Afghan Defense Ministry spokesman Enayatullah Khowarazmi described the operation as a punitive response to Pakistan’s violation of Afghan airspace. He added that the clashes stopped at midnight local time.

“If the other side violates Afghanistan’s airspace once again, our armed forces are ready to defend the airspace and will respond strongly,” Khowarazmi said. he said.

Meanwhile, Qatar expressed alarm over rising border tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan and called on both countries to act moderately and engage in constructive talks to resolve their disputes.

It has only been days since Afghanistan’s 201 Khalid bin Walid Army Corps allegedly launched an airstrike near Kabul, which Pakistan claimed sparked “retaliatory” operations against Pakistan’s military installations in Nangarhar and Kunar. However, Islamabad neither confirmed nor denied the attack.

According to local sources speaking to TOLOnews, clashes also broke out in Aryoub Zazi district of Paktia province. They have also spread to other areas along the disputed border, including Spina Shaga, Giwi and Mani Jabha.

The Afghan Ministry of Defense claims that “the facilities and equipment of the Pakistani side were destroyed in tonight’s attacks.” It was also stated that Pakistani forces were injured and many weapons and vehicles were lost to Taliban militants, and one police station each was destroyed in Kunar and Helmand.

Reports of simultaneous violence in Paktia, Pktika, Khost, Kunar, Helmand and Nangarhar provinces indicate that the conflict is spreading.

The fragile and volatile nature of Afghanistan-Pakistan relations, long strained by territorial disputes and accusations of harboring militants, is highlighted by analysts who warn that this is one of the most severe border tensions since the Taliban came to power in 2021.