Pakistan and Afghanistan traded new claims of cross-border attacks on Wednesday, deepening a confrontation that has already killed hundreds along one of Asia’s most volatile frontiers.
Pakistan’s military said Afghan Taliban forces launched four rudimentary drones into Balochistan, a province that borders Afghanistan and has seen repeated violence. It said the drones were detected by Pakistan’s air defence network and intercepted, Al Jazeera reported.
“If the Afghan Taliban continue to provoke Pakistan, they would receive a befitting response which would cost them heavily,” the Pakistani military said.
The Afghan defence ministry said on X that it had carried out “air strikes” in Pakistan’s Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces. It said the strikes caused casualties among members of an ISIL affiliate, though the scale of the damage and the casualty figures were not immediately clear.
The Taliban’s military does not have fighter jets and lacks a fully functional air force. It has, however, used small drones in fighting with Pakistan, mainly in border areas.
The exchange followed Pakistani attacks in eastern Afghanistan earlier this week. Islamabad said those strikes targeted fighters after a deadly weekend attack in Karachi. Afghan officials said at least 36 civilians were killed.
Relations between Islamabad and Kabul have been tense since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021. Pakistan accuses the Taliban government of sheltering armed groups, including the Pakistan Taliban, known as the TTP, which has carried out attacks inside Pakistan for years.
Afghan officials deny those accusations and say Pakistan is violating Afghan sovereignty. The situation remains unclear along the border, where both governments are now claiming retaliation and warning of heavier costs.
