Afghanistan accuses Pakistan of deadly overnight airstrikes, killing 9 children

Afghanistan’s Taliban government on Tuesday accused Pakistan of launching overnight airstrikes across three eastern provinces, killing 10 civilians, including nine children. The allegation has deepened already strained ties between the neighbouring countries.

Zabihullah Mujahid, chief spokesperson of the Afghan government, said on X that Pakistan “bombed” a civilian home in Khost province, killing nine children and a woman. He added that further strikes hit the provinces of Kunar and Paktika, injuring four people.

Pakistan’s military and government have not yet commented on the accusations. The claim comes more than a month after Kabul alleged that Pakistani drone strikes hit locations inside the Afghan capital.

The latest escalation follows a deadly incident a day earlier in Pakistan’s northwestern city of Peshawar, where two suicide bombers and a gunman stormed the headquarters of the Federal Constabulary, killing three officers and injuring 11 others.

No group has claimed responsibility, but suspicion has fallen on the TTP (Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan) — a group separate from, but closely aligned to, the Afghan Taliban. Many TTP leaders are believed to be sheltering in Afghanistan.

Pakistan has repeatedly urged Kabul to act against TTP militants operating from Afghan soil. Afghanistan denies the claim and says it does not permit any individual or group to use its territory for attacks against other countries, including Pakistan.

Relations deteriorated further after Afghanistan blamed Pakistan for drone strikes on 9 October in Kabul and threatened retaliation. The clashes that followed left soldiers, civilians and militants dead before Qatar brokered a ceasefire on 19 October.

Two subsequent rounds of talks in Istanbul failed to resolve the standoff, with Pakistan saying Afghanistan refused to provide a written assurance that TTP fighters would not operate from Afghan territory.

As of Tuesday, Kabul has not indicated what response it plans following the reported airstrikes.

With PTI inputs