Pakistan Air Force Strikes Alleged Militant Hideouts in Afghanistan; Taliban Warns of Retaliation

ISLAMABAD, Sept 21 : The Pakistan Air Force carried out pre-dawn airstrikes on alleged militant hideouts in eastern Afghanistan on Monday, killing at least three civilians, according to Afghan Taliban officials, while Islamabad claimed the operation eliminated more than 28 suspected militants.

The strikes targeted areas in Nurgal district of Kunar province and Barmal district of Paktika province. Pakistan said the targets were hideouts linked to Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, groups it accuses of carrying out attacks inside Pakistan.

The strikes came in retaliation for a suicide bombing on Friday at a mosque inside a police facility in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which killed at least 16 people and injured dozens.

According to Pakistani officials, fighter jets and drones struck targets in Patang in Nurgal district and Torkandi and Rukha in Barmal district. Pakistan's military had not issued an official statement on the latest operation at the time of reporting.

However, Taliban officials said the strikes hit residential areas rather than militant camps and resulted in civilian casualties. Afghan deputy government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat said a house belonging to a villager, Noor Ahmad, in Pathan village in Nurgal was destroyed, killing him and two members of his family and injuring four other relatives.

Taliban chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid condemned the strikes as a "war crime" and warned that they "will not go unanswered." In a statement posted on X, Mujahid accused Pakistan's military leadership of targeting Afghan territory and civilians and said the Taliban would respond to what it described as repeated violations of Afghanistan's sovereignty.

The latest strikes come amid months of escalating tensions between Pakistan and the Taliban administration. Islamabad has repeatedly accused Kabul of providing sanctuary to TTP militants operating from Afghan territory. The Taliban denies the allegations and maintains that militancy inside Pakistan is an internal issue.

Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai also condemned the airstrikes, describing them as a violation of Afghanistan's sovereignty. In a statement posted on social media, Karzai expressed condolences to the families of those killed and urged Pakistan to abandon policies that, he said, contribute to instability between the two neighbouring countries.

Karzai said military operations inside Afghanistan would not resolve Pakistan's security challenges and called for "good neighbourliness, friendly relations, and civilized engagement" between the two countries.

Relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan have remained strained since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021. Islamabad has repeatedly accused the Taliban administration of failing to prevent militants from using Afghan territory to launch attacks inside Pakistan, while Kabul rejects the allegations and says it does not permit Afghan soil to be used against other countries.

The latest airstrikes represent another escalation in tensions along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, with both sides continuing to exchange accusations over cross-border militancy and military operations.