Pakistan’s military on Wednesday confirmed that Taliban had launched drones into Balochistan province, saying four unmanned aircraft crossed into Pakistani airspace from Afghanistan but were intercepted before reaching their targets.
In a statement, the military said Pakistan’s air defense systems shot down all four drones after they entered the country’s airspace.
The statement said the Taliban have staged the attack to divert attention from domestic discontent in Afghanistan.
“Such tactics by the Afghan Taliban regime are aimed at misleading the Afghan people, who are suffering under its repressive rule,” the military said. “Instead of trying to pacify their people through such gimmicks and hollow rhetoric, they should stop supporting terrorism and adhere to the principles of peaceful coexistence.”
The military warned that if the Taliban continued what it described as provocations against Pakistan, they would receive a response that would be “very costly.”
This comes after the Taliban Ministry of Defense said on Tuesday it had carried out “airstrikes” on what it described as joint ISIS and “elements of evil and corruption” centers in Pakistan’s Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces.
The ministry claimed the sites had been used to plan and coordinate attacks inside Afghanistan and said the operation inflicted “heavy casualties” on ISIS and its supporters. It did not provide evidence to support the claim.
The exchange follows a sharp escalation in tensions between the two sides.
On Sunday night, Pakistan carried out airstrikes in Afghanistan’s eastern provinces of Paktia, Paktika and Kunar, saying it had targeted hideouts belonging to Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Jamaat-ul-Ahrar and killed 25 militants.
The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), however, said the strikes killed at least 28 civilians, including women and children, and injured 49 others. Taliban say Pakistan has bombed residential areas, condemning the attacks as a violation of Afghanistan’s sovereignty.
The latest exchange of cross-border strikes further heightens tensions between Pakistan and the Taliban, whose relations have deteriorated over disputes over border security, cross-border militancy and mutual accusations of harboring armed groups.
Several residents of Kabul said they heard the sound of drones over the city on Tuesday night, followed by some gunfires.
