Pakistan says responding to ‘unprovoked’ Afghan Taliban fire along border

Pakistan’s security forces responded to ”unprovoked fire” by Afghan Taliban forces at multiple points along the Pakistan–Afghanistan border on Thursday, Pakistan’s information ministry said.The ministry wrote on X that Taliban forces opened fire across several sectors in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and that Pakistani troops delivered an ”immediate and effective response”, inflicting heavy casualties and destroying multiple posts and equipment.

Afghanistan attacked Pakistani military positions along the border late on Thursday in retaliation for Pakistani airstrikes, the Taliban said, adding to fears of a renewed escalation of violence between the neighbours.
Videos shared by Afghan security forces showed Humvees driving through dark, mountainous terrain at night, lit by flashes of gunfire. Sustained bursts of automatic fire could be heard in the background.Reuters could not independently verify the location, timing or authenticity of the images.

Pakistan was responding to “unprovoked fire” by Afghan forces along the border, the Information Ministry in Islamabad said.

Afghan forces opened fire on posts in Pakistan’s mountainous northwest, sparking more than two hours of fighting before Pakistani troops retaliated, Pakistani officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to speak to the media.

The clashes along the 2,600-km (1,615-mile) are the latest flare-up to threaten a fragile ceasefire following deadly clashes in October.