At least 110 civilians, most of them women and children, have been killed in Pakistani air and missile strikes since cross-border clashes began six days ago, a Taliban spokesman claimed Tuesday, offering a sharply higher toll than previously reported by the United Nations.
Hamdullah Fitrat, Taliban deputy spokesman, told a news conference that 65 of the dead were women and children and that 123 other civilians had been wounded. He said the casualties resulted from airstrikes and mortar fire.
The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan has reported 42 civilian deaths during the same period, a figure far lower than the Taliban’s claim.
Fitrat said the strikes had hit Kabul, Kandahar, Nangarhar, Laghman, Kunar, Khost and Paktika provinces, targeting civilian homes, mosques, madrassas, public facilities and three refugee camps — one in Kandahar, one in Torkham in Nangarhar province and another in Kunar.
He said 37 homes had been destroyed and 316 partially damaged, while 1,200 shops were affected. A clinic, 19 mosques and one madrassa were also damaged, he said. According to Fitrat, about 8,400 families have been displaced by the fighting.
Pakistan has continued to violate Afghanistan’s airspace for six consecutive days, he said.
Residents have reported repeated airstrikes in Kabul since Thursday night, Feb. 26, including attacks near a military installation close to Kabul International Airport and another site in the Darul Aman area west of the capital. Explosions were also reported early Tuesday morning. Fitrat did not specifically address strikes in Kabul during his remarks.
The clashes began after escalating tensions along the border. Pakistan has said its strikes targeted centers of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, a militant group that Islamabad says operates from Afghanistan’s territory. Taliban officials have rejected the remarks.
Responding to a question about a proposal from TTP to coordinate against Pakistan, Fitrat said the Taliban administration does not support armed groups that act against other countries. Pakistan has repeatedly urged the Taliban to take action against the presence of TTP inside Afghanistan.
Fitrat said Taliban officials had contacted several countries — including China, Russia and Britain, as well as the European Union — seeking assistance in easing tensions with Pakistan.
“We are not in favor of this fight,” he said. “We have made contacts to end it.”
This comes as Pakistani officials have claimed that over 350 Taliban members have been killed in Pakistan attacks.
The competing casualty figures and battlefield claims could not be independently verified.
