Pakistan strikes Kandahar as cross-border conflict with Afghanistan escalates
Islamabad says it hit militant infrastructure in southern Afghanistan after alleged Taliban-linked drone attacks, deepening a rapidly worsening standoff along the border.
Pakistan said on Sunday that its forces carried out strikes on military facilities and what it called “terrorist hideouts” in southern Afghanistan, the latest escalation in a growing confrontation with the interim Taliban government.
Security sources in Pakistan said the operation targeted a technical support site and an equipment storage facility in Kandahar.
Another strike reportedly hit a tunnel near Kandahar that officials said was used by the Afghan Taliban and the terror group Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
Pakistan’s fighter jets over Afghanistan
Residents in Kandahar said they saw fighter jets flying overhead during the night and heard explosions.
One resident said an aircraft passed over a mountain housing a military facility before a blast lit up the area with flames.
Explosions were also reported in Spin Boldak, southeast of Kandahar, while authorities in Khost Province near the border said clashes broke out late Saturday.
Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the strikes caused limited damage, hitting a drug rehabilitation center and an empty shipping container in Kandahar.
“The places they are talking about are far away from these two places,” he told AFP, disputing Pakistan’s account.
The strikes came a day after Pakistan said it had intercepted drone attacks launched from Afghanistan. Officials said at least three locations were targeted, including the country’s military headquarters in Rawalpindi, near Islamabad.
The office of Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari accused the Afghan Taliban of crossing a “red line” by targeting civilians and vowed retaliation.
Islamabad launched a military operation against militant groups in Afghanistan last month after a string of attacks inside Pakistan. The Taliban government has denied allowing militants to use Afghan territory, while Pakistan insists its strikes are aimed only at extremists.
Border clashes between the two sides have intensified in recent weeks, disrupting trade routes and forcing residents near the frontier to flee their homes.
According to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, at least 75 civilians have been killed and 193 wounded in Afghanistan since February 26 as a result of the escalating violence.