by Abdul Rahman
March 01, 2026
Pakistan has long accused the Taliban rulers of Afghanistan of sheltering militants killing civilians in the country from across the border, launching a similar attack in October last year as well.
Pakistan launched multiple airstrikes inside Afghanistan on the night of Thursday, February 26, targeting different locations in the capital, Kabul, as well as Kandahar, and Paktia, killing and injuring scores of people and causing massive damage.
The attacks targeted the Afghan military and Taliban weapon depots, including in Nangarhar near the border, Pakistan forces claimed.
Heavy fighting was reported along the border regions between the two countries on Friday, with Pakistan claiming its forces captured several Taliban checkposts which were used in the cross border firings on Thursday.
Pakistan has claimed the strikes and attacks were part of the operation “Gazab lil-Haq” (“Righteous Fury”) that it is conducting after unprovoked attacks fired from across the border in Afghanistan, as well as the Taliban’s failures to curb the cross border militancy.
Various locations in Pakistan’s border province Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), such as Chitral, Khyber, Kurram, Mohmand and others were subjected to simultaneous unprovoked cross border firing from Afghanistan on Thursday night, Dawn reported.
Meanwhile, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid claimed, in a post on X, that his country’s forces carried out drone strikes inside Pakistan on Friday morning, targeting its military camps near Faisalabad and Nowshera.
Later, Pakistan’s Minister for Information Attaullah Tarar claimed a number of small drones launched by the Taliban were downed by Pakistan’s armed forces in Abbottabad, Swabi and Nowshera. At least one civilian was injured in one such drone strike in Swabi in KP, Dawn reported.
Both countries have made claims about killing a number of enemy fighters during their strikes. According to Pakistan’s Ministry of Information, at least 228 Taliban fighters have been killed in the strikes and over 300 injured so far. It claimed two of its security personnel were also killed.
However, the Taliban claimed it has killed 55 Pakistan soldiers in various attacks, while losing eight of its fighters.
An “open war”
On Friday, Pakistan’s Minister of Defense Khawaja Asif called his country’s military actions in Afghanistan an “open war”, repeating his country’s long-standing accusation of the Taliban sheltering militants from Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Islamic State (ISIS).
He said his country’s patience had run out after fresh cross border attacks into Pakistan earlier this month, in which scores of civilians and military personnel were killed.
The Taliban has denied Pakistan’s accusations of sheltering militants.
Afghanistan and Pakistan share a 2,600 km long border known as the Durand Line. Most of the border is quite porous due to difficult terrain.
Pakistan launched an airstrike earlier this week in eastern Afghanistan, apparently targeting the hideouts of TTP and ISIS militants after their repeated attacks on civilians and military targets this month.
At least 18 people were killed in Pakistani strikes, though Pakistan claimed a higher number of TTP fighters were killed.
The Taliban’s cross border firing in KP on Thursday, in which at least one Pakistani civilian was killed and several others were injured, came as a retaliation to Pakistan’s strike inside its territory on Sunday.
Calls for calm and offers of mediation
The two countries had fought a similar war in October of last year, killing scores of people on both sides. After days of fighting, a ceasefire was achieved after mediation from Turkey, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.
Asif accused the Taliban of becoming a proxy of its long term enemy, India, after the withdrawal of US forces from the country five years earlier.
Pakistan has claimed the TTP and other militant groups are operating in Pakistan with the backing of India and the Taliban as a part of their longer plan to weaken the country.
Both India and the Taliban deny Pakistan’s accusations.
Nuclear-powered India and Pakistan have fought three major wars since 1947. Last May, the two sides were on the brink of yet another war after 26 unarmed civilians were killed by militants in India’s Pulwama in April.
Meanwhile, various regional powers, such as Iran and Saudi Arabia, have expressed concerns over the fight and called for immediate deescalation.
Several other countries in the region, such as Russia and China, have also demanded an end of the hostilities.
UN Secretary General António Guterres asked both parties to adhere to international humanitarian law and cease fighting.
Countries, such as Iran and Russia, have offered to mediate in reaching a political solution to the conflict between both the countries.
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