Afghan, Pakistani Armies Exchange Heavy Fire Along Border

Islamabad, MINA — Border tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan escalated on Saturday as their armies exchanged heavy artillery fire along multiple frontier provinces, Anadolu Agency reported.

The clashes followed accusations by Afghanistan’s interim Taliban administration that the Pakistani army violated Afghan airspace and bombed a market in Paktika province’s Margha region on Thursday night.

Islamabad has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for the airstrike but reiterated that it would “do everything to protect its citizens,” amid a surge in terrorist attacks blamed on the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

Pakistani security sources told Anadolu that exchanges of artillery and small-arms fire continued across the border areas of Khost, Nangarhar, Paktika, Paktia, and Kunar provinces on Saturday evening.

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“Firing along the eastern border provinces is ongoing, and there are reports of some casualties, but we cannot confirm the figures at the moment,” one security official said, accusing Afghan border forces of initiating the attack.

Afghanistan’s interim Defense Ministry said it had carried out “retaliatory operations” in response to what it described as repeated Pakistani air violations.

In a statement, the ministry said, “Afghan forces conducted successful retaliatory operations targeting Pakistani security outposts along the Durand Line. These operations concluded at midnight local time.”

Videos circulating on social media appeared to show intense artillery fire across the border, though Anadolu could not independently verify the footage.

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Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of harboring TTP militants and failing to prevent them from launching cross-border attacks. Kabul has repeatedly denied the allegations, saying it remains committed to preventing any group from using Afghan soil to attack neighboring countries.

The renewed border clashes came as interim Afghan Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi visited India, where he met with Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar. The two officials issued a joint statement in which Jaishankar thanked Afghanistan for condemning the April Pahalgam attack in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry, however, objected to the statement, saying the reference to Jammu and Kashmir “as part of India” violated UN Security Council resolutions and the region’s disputed legal status.[]

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)

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