Afghanistan’s Taliban government on Friday accused Pakistan of carrying out airstrikes inside its territory, warning that there would be “consequences” if such actions continued. Islamabad said it was taking steps to protect its citizens from militants operating from across the border, Reuters reported. Afghanistan’s Defence Ministry said in a statement that airstrikes hit Kabul late on Thursday and Paktika province around midnight. “This is an unprecedented, violent and provocative act in the history of Afghanistan and Pakistan,” the ministry said. “If the situation escalates further following these actions, the consequences will be the responsibility of the Pakistani military.” According to the Taliban administration, there were no casualties from the reported strikes. A Pakistani security official, speaking to Reuters, said a vehicle used by Noor Wali Mehsud, the leader of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), was targeted in the Kabul strike. It was not clear if Mehsud was killed. The Afghan Defence Ministry declined to comment on his fate. Pakistan says it will act “as necessary” Islamabad did not confirm or deny the airstrikes but said it would continue to act against militants using Afghan soil to attack Pakistan. Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, the Pakistani military spokesman, told reporters: “To protect the lives of the people of Pakistan, we are doing, and will continue to do, whatever is necessary. Our demand to Afghanistan: your soil must not be used for terrorism against Pakistan.” Pakistani security officials told Reuters that eleven soldiers were killed on Friday in clashes with militants in the Tirah region, near the Afghan border. Islamabad has long accused the TTP of using Afghan territory as a base for attacks, a claim the Taliban deny. The TTP has fought for years to topple the Pakistani government and impose its own strict interpretation of Islamic rule. The group has long been linked to the Afghan Taliban, which inspired its creation. Visit to India coincides with border tensions The tensions between Islamabad and Kabul coincided with a rare visit to India by Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi. This photograph shared by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, on the X platform shows him, right, handing over a symbolic key after making a gift of ambulances to Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in New Delhi. (AP) India announced on Friday that it would reopen its embassy in Kabul, which had been closed since the Taliban returned to power in 2021. The move marks a step towards upgrading ties with the Taliban administration, which remains diplomatically isolated. Pakistan has also accused its rival India of backing the TTP through Afghan channels, a claim New Delhi has repeatedly denied, calling it “baseless”.
