KABUL, Afghanistan — Pakistani airstrikes in eastern Afghanistan’s Paktika Province killed at least 46 people, most of them women and children, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said as quoted by AFP on Wednesday.
Quoted by AFP, Mujahid said that Pakistan targeted four locations in Barmal District late Tuesday. “The total number of dead is 46, most of whom were children and women,” Mujahid said, adding that six others were wounded, mostly children.
Taliban vow retaliation
The Taliban’s Ministry of Defense issued a strongly worded statement late Tuesday, condemning the strikes as a “clear aggression” and pledging a response.
“The Islamic Emirate will not leave this cowardly act unanswered,” the ministry said, using the Taliban’s preferred name for their government. “Defending our territory and sovereignty is our inalienable right.”
According to AFP report, Taliban confirmed that the victims were a mix of local residents and refugees who had crossed into Afghanistan from Pakistan’s Waziristan region.
The border between Afghanistan and Pakistan has long been a flashpoint, with Islamabad accusing Kabul’s Taliban authorities of harboring militants who carry out attacks on Pakistani soil. The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), shares ideological ties with the Afghan Taliban and has escalated attacks within Pakistan in recent months.
Last week, the TTP claimed responsibility for a raid on a Pakistani army outpost near the Afghan border, which intelligence officials said left 16 soldiers dead. The TTP has been a persistent thorn for Islamabad, with a U.N. Security Council report in July estimating that up to 6,500 TTP fighters are based in Afghanistan.
While Taliban have denied harboring militants, the U.N. report noted that the Taliban government does not view the TTP as a terrorist group.
North Waziristan, a region bordering Paktika, has historically been a stronghold for militant groups and the focus of Pakistani military operations and U.S. drone strikes during the post-9/11 era.
Pakistan has not issued an official statement regarding the latest airstrikes. The incident coincided with a visit to Kabul by Pakistan’s special envoy for Afghanistan, who was engaged in high-level talks with Taliban officials on Tuesday.
