Clashes between neighbours Pakistan and Afghanistan continue, with fresh reports emerging early Wednesday from a remote northwestern region in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. State-run media in Pakistan accused Afghan troops of opening “unprovoked firing” that was repulsed.Pakistani forces responded, reportedly damaging Afghan tanks and military posts, according to Pakistan TV and two security officials who spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
“Afghan Taliban and Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan opened unprovoked fire in Kurram. Pakistani Army responded with full force and intensity,” reported state broadcaster PTV News, quoting security sources on X.According to Dawn, Taliban regime posts suffered heavy damage and a tank caught fire after being hit, with Taliban fighters fleeing from their positions. A later report added: “Another post and tank position of the Afghan Taliban destroyed in Kurram sector.”
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Tahir Ahrar, a deputy police spokesperson in Afghanistan’s Khost province, confirmed the clashes but provided no further details.This marks the second time this week that both sides have exchanged fire along their long shared border.Pakistan’s state-run media reported that Afghan forces and Pakistani Taliban jointly opened fire at a Pakistani post “without provocation,” prompting what the media described as a “strong response” from Pakistani troops in Kurram, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Security officials also said Pakistan’s military destroyed a sprawling training facility of the Pakistani Taliban.There was no immediate comment from Pakistan’s military, which has been on high alert since Saturday when both sides traded fire across multiple border regions, resulting in dozens of casualties on each side.Although the clashes paused on Sunday after appeals from Saudi Arabia and Qatar, all border crossings between Pakistan and Afghanistan remain closed.Over the weekend, Kabul said it targeted several Pakistani military posts, killing 58 Pakistani soldiers in retaliation for what it called repeated violations of Afghan territory and airspace. Pakistan’s military reported lower figures, saying it lost 23 soldiers and killed more than 200 “Taliban and affiliated terrorists” in retaliatory fire along the frontier.Tensions have remained high since last week, when the Taliban government accused Pakistan of carrying out airstrikes in Kabul and in an eastern market. Pakistan has not acknowledged those allegations.Pakistan has previously launched strikes inside Afghanistan, saying it targets hideouts of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a group separate from but allied with the Afghan Taliban. Pakistan accuses Kabul of harbouring the group, which has carried out numerous deadly attacks inside Pakistan. Kabul denies the charge, saying it does not allow its territory to be used against other countries.
