First cross-border airstrikes in weeks
Pakistan's air force struck Kabul and multiple Afghan border provinces overnight Thursday into Friday, killing at least four people in the capital and two in the eastern provinces, according to Taliban officials. The bombardment marked a resumption of hostilities after ground fighting had tapered off in recent days. Khalil Zadran, spokesman for Kabul police, said the strikes killed four people and wounded 15 others in homes across the city.
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid reported that Pakistani aircraft also targeted the southern province of Kandahar as well as eastern Paktia and Paktika, which border Pakistan. The strikes hit fuel depots belonging to private airline Kam Air near Kandahar Airport, Mujahid said on X.
Pakistan's stated justification
A Pakistani security official confirmed the operation, saying it targeted the Pakistani Taliban, known as the TTP. Pakistan declared open war on Afghanistan on February 27, accusing the Taliban government of sheltering terrorists. Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said at the time, "Our patience has run out."
Pakistani security sources characterized the strikes as "successful airstrikes" against "four terrorist hideouts" in Kabul and frontier provinces, and claimed to have destroyed an oil storage facility at Kandahar airport. Pakistan maintains that it does not target civilians. The UN mission in Afghanistan documented 56 civilians killed, including 24 children, by Pakistani military operations from February 26 to March 5.
Taliban denies harboring militants
Afghanistan's Taliban government has rejected Pakistan's accusations. Islamabad accuses Kabul of harboring fighters from the Pakistan Taliban, which has claimed responsibility for deadly attacks inside Pakistan, and from the ISIS affiliate in Khorasan province. Afghan authorities deny the charge entirely.
Journalist Umair Jamal noted in analysis that since declaring "open war," Pakistan has "targeted Taliban military facilities in Kabul, including ammunition depots, as well as sites in Kandahar, Paktia, and other provinces." He observed that "notably, these strikes included direct attacks on urban centers for the first time."
Afghan retaliation and civilian toll
Afghanistan claimed to have retaliated with drone strikes targeting Pakistani military positions in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including a fortress and command center, following alleged violations along the disputed Durand Line border.
Abdul Wahid, a 29-year-old daily laborer in Kabul, told news agencies that he and four family members were wounded when his house was hit at approximately 12:10 a.m. local time. "Suddenly, a noise came from another house. All these bricks fell on me. Women and children were under the rubble as well," he said.
Displacement and humanitarian crisis
The fighting has forced approximately 115,000 people to flee their homes, according to the UN. UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk released a statement on March 6 imploring both nations to end the violence immediately. "Civilians on both sides of the border are now having to flee from airstrikes, heavy artillery fire, mortar shelling and gunfire," Türk said.
The violence is also hampering humanitarian aid distribution. Nearly 22 million people, nearly half of Afghanistan's population, require humanitarian assistance. Türk characterized the situation as "piling misery on misery."
