Pakistani claimed on Sunday that nearly 70 militants were killed in Saturday night’s overnight airstrikes in eastern Afghanistan, sharply disputing Taliban claims that the attacks killed civilians.
The strikes, conducted around midnight on Feb. 21, targeted areas in Nangarhar and Paktika provinces amid escalating tensions between Islamabad and the Taliban. The Taliban have claimed that more than 20 civilians, including women and children, were killed in Behsud district of Nangarhar province.
Talal Chaudhry, Pakistan’s deputy interior minister, told Geo News that the operation was based on intelligence and struck seven camps and hideouts belonging to what he described as “Fitna al-Khawarij” — a term used by Pakistan for Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) — as well as affiliated fighters and members of the Daesh’s Khorasan branch.
“Afghanistan has long been exporting terrorism,” Chaudhry said, adding that Pakistan had taken all necessary steps to ensure the security of its citizens.
He said Pakistan had carried out roughly 70,000 intelligence-based operations across the country and had made numerous arrests in recent years.
Pakistan’s Ministry of Information confirmed the cross-border strikes, calling them “precise and calculated” operations carried out in retaliation for recent suicide and car bomb attacks inside Pakistan, including assaults in Islamabad, Bajaur and Bannu during Ramadan.
Pakistani officials have said those attacks were orchestrated by militants operating from Afghanistan’s territory.
Taliban have rejected Pakistan’s account, describing the strikes as an attack on civilians and a violation of Afghanistan’s sovereignty. The Taliban’s Defense Ministry has warned that it will deliver a “calculated response at an appropriate time.”
The exchange marks one of the most serious escalations in months between the two sides, with Pakistan repeatedly accusing the Taliban of harboring TTP fighters — an allegation the Taliban deny — and cross-border airstrikes becoming an increasingly frequent feature of the dispute.
