The Pakistani army said on Wednesday that it intercepted four drones launched from Afghanistan the previous day, marking the latest incident in months of ongoing conflict between the two neighboring countries.
اضافة اعلان
The Taliban government had vowed to retaliate against deadly Pakistani airstrikes that targeted eastern Afghanistan this week, while the Afghan Ministry of Defense announced in a statement issued last night that it had carried out aerial operations targeting militants in Pakistani border provinces.
The Pakistani army stated that on Tuesday, Afghan Taliban forces "launched four rudimentary drones across the border into Balochistan province... and Pakistan's air defense network immediately detected those hostile aerial platforms."
It added, "If the Afghan Taliban continue to provoke Pakistan, they will receive an appropriate response that will cost them dearly."
For its part, the Afghan Ministry of Defense stated on X (formerly Twitter) that it launched "airstrikes" in Balochistan and the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, noting that these strikes resulted in casualties among elements of the "Daesh" (ISIS) terrorist organization.
The Taliban's military forces lack a fully operational air force, but they have utilized small drones to target areas mostly located along the border with Pakistan.
Pakistan, which denies that the "Daesh" terrorist organization uses its territory, made no mention of any casualties and accused the Afghan government of "misleading" its people, stating that the drone attacks "were effectively thwarted."
This incident marks the latest escalation in the conflict between the two neighbors, whose relations have been strained since 2021 when the Taliban government took power in Kabul following a war that erupted in February.
Following a deadly attack in Karachi over the weekend, Pakistani airstrikes killed dozens of people in eastern Afghanistan. While Islamabad stated on Monday that it had targeted militants, the Afghan government reported civilian casualties.
For its part, the United Nations confirmed that the strikes resulted in the deaths of 28 civilians and injured dozens of others. Pakistan did not comment on civilian casualties but stated that 29 militants were killed as a result of the strikes and ground operations.
Months of conflict, which has claimed hundreds of lives, have centered around Islamabad’s accusations that the Taliban government harbors militants behind a surge in attacks—specifically the "Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan" (TTP), which has been waging a violent campaign against Pakistan for years.
Afghan officials deny these allegations, countering that Pakistan harbors hostile groups and fails to respect their country's sovereignty.
AFP
