Afghan provincial authorities reported that Pakistani air strikes struck the Nurgal district in Kunar province early Monday morning, resulting in at least three fatalities and four injuries. A house in the area was directly hit during the bombardment, killing three members of the same family while wounding four others, according to Taliban deputy spokesperson statements. In a separate incident, two locations in the Barmal district of Paktika province were targeted, destroying a shop and an unoccupied residence with no casualties reported in that strike.
Pakistan had not issued an official response to the alleged attacks as of the report’s publication. The incidents represent a significant development in the contentious relationship between the two countries, potentially disrupting nearly three months of relative stability that had followed their most severe military confrontations in recent years occurring earlier in the year. The February clashes marked a particularly intense period of hostilities between the former allies.
The underlying dispute centers on cross-border violence and security concerns. Pakistan has accused the Afghan Taliban government of providing sanctuary to armed organizations that launch attacks into Pakistani territory. The Taliban administration has consistently rejected these allegations, characterizing the violence within Pakistan as that country’s internal security matter rather than a problem originating from Afghanistan.
The air strikes followed a significant terrorist attack that occurred days prior in Kohat, a city in northwestern Pakistan. A bombing at a mosque located within a police facility resulted in at least 21 deaths, predominantly among police personnel, with a subsequent armed engagement at the scene. A Pakistan Taliban faction claimed responsibility for the assault. Pakistan’s Ministry of Information had warned on Saturday that the nation reserved the right to conduct military operations against fighters positioned inside Afghanistan in response to such attacks, specifically attributing the Kohat incident to militants based across the border.
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