Intensifying hostilities along the Durand Line have unleashed devastation in Afghanistan’s Khost and Paktika, where 19 perished—chiefly women and kids—and 26 suffered wounds, according to deputy spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat.
Taliban voice Zabihullah Mujahid, addressing Kandahar media, pinned instability on a Pakistan-harbored ‘disruptive faction’ fueled by capital tensions. He beseeched neighbors to quash agitators, touting Afghan forces’ surgical hits on Pakistani bases.
Retaliatory cycles ignited post-Pakistan’s overnight assaults on Kabul, Kandahar, and Paktia locales, felling 13 soldiers and maiming 22. Dawn broke with Afghan ripostes on Islamabad vicinity, Naushera barracks, Jamrud quarters, and Abbottabad points.
Ministry tallies credit border ops with 55 Pakistani casualties, capture of 19 posts plus dual bases, offset by eight Afghan deaths and 11 injuries. A preceding Pakistani missile on Nangarhar displaced persons’ site felled no one but hurt 13 non-combatants.
Mujahid underscored dialogue bids rebuffed by Pakistan, which he chided for conflict-mongering, internal problem projection, and aerial trespasses. Pakistan countered via ‘Operation Gajab Lil-Haq,’ PAF blasts on Afghan strongholds.
This maelstrom of strikes imperils stability, with heartbreaking civilian tolls. Absent de-escalation, the frontier feud could spiral, compelling global stakeholders to broker peace before irreparable harm.