IRIA News

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The Afghan Taliban said that the group is open to talks with Islamabad after the Pakistan Army launched airstrikes targeting locations in Kabul and multiple Afghan provinces, marking a dramatic escalation in tensions along the disputed Durand Line border.

Pakistan and Afghanistan entered one of their most serious military confrontations on February 27, 2026. Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif declared on Friday that Islamabad’s patience with Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities had ended, stating that the situation had now reached the level of “open war” between the two neighboring countries.

The announcement followed reports from Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid that Afghan forces had begun what he described as “large-scale offensive operations” against Pakistani military positions along the frontier separating the two states.

The rapid escalation comes after weeks of mounting clashes, cross-border shelling, and retaliatory attacks that have pushed relations between Islamabad and Kabul to their lowest point since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021.

Air Strikes and Military Operations

Pakistani officials said Afghan forces attacked military installations near the border early Friday, prompting Pakistan to launch retaliatory air strikes inside Afghanistan. The first strike reportedly occurred around 1:50 AM local time, with Afghan air defense systems responding shortly afterward.

Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the strikes targeted what he described as “Afghan Taliban defense targets” in Kabul, southeastern Paktia province, and southern Kandahar. Afghan authorities later confirmed that these regions had been hit.

According to local sources inside Kabul, Pakistani airstrikes targeted an ammunition depot in Kabul, triggering secondary explosions as stored ordnance continued to detonate after the initial strikes.

Security officials cited in international reporting said at least two Afghan brigade bases were destroyed during the operation. Pakistani state media claimed that several Taliban military facilities, including a brigade headquarters and ammunition depot in Kandahar, were eliminated within hours.

Additional fighting was reported near the strategically vital Torkham border crossing, where shelling and gunfire were heard as Afghan forces moved toward the frontier. The crossing, a key commercial and migration route, has remained partially operational despite repeated closures caused by earlier clashes.

Pakistan also stated that Afghan Taliban positions were being engaged in several districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, including Chitral, Khyber, Mohmand, Kurram, and Bajaur, indicating that hostilities were unfolding simultaneously on both sides of the border.

Conflicting Casualty Claims

Casualty figures remain disputed, with both governments presenting sharply different accounts. Mosharraf Zaidi, spokesperson for Pakistan’s prime minister, said Pakistani operations killed 133 Afghan Taliban fighters and wounded more than 200 others.

He added that 27 Taliban posts were destroyed and nine captured, while more than 80 military vehicles and artillery systems were eliminated. Pakistani media reported that two Pakistani soldiers were killed during the clashes.

Taliban authorities rejected Pakistan’s claims, stating that only eight fighters were killed and 11 were wounded. Afghan officials, known for exaggerating claims, instead asserted that their forces had killed 55 Pakistani soldiers and seized two military bases and 19 posts along the border, claims Islamabad has dismissed.

The violence follows Pakistani air strikes conducted days earlier, which Islamabad said killed at least 70 militants. Taliban officials countered that the attacks caused civilian casualties, including women and children. Local Afghan Red Crescent officials in Nangarhar reported at least 18 deaths from those earlier strikes.

Roots of the Conflict

The latest confrontation reflects long-standing disputes intensified since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. Central to tensions is the Durand Line, a 2,611-kilometre border drawn during the colonial period that Afghanistan has never formally recognized. Kabul argues the boundary unjustly divides ethnic Pashtun communities between the two countries, making it one of South Asia’s most politically sensitive frontiers.

Security tensions have also been driven by Pakistan’s accusations that Afghanistan is harboring the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a militant group responsible for a surge in attacks inside Pakistan since its emergence in 2007. Although separate from Afghanistan’s Taliban government, the TTP maintains ideological and historical ties with it.

Violence linked to the TTP and the Balochistan Liberation Army has increasingly affected Pakistan’s border provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, areas Islamabad considers central to its national security concerns.

Pak Army strikes Afghan posts with the Multi Launch Rocket System (MLRS) 💥#Pakistan #Afghanistan #ISPR pic.twitter.com/ZLFTzQrYkm

— Pakistan Armed Forces News 🇵🇰 (@PakistanFauj) February 27, 2026

Analysts note that Afghan Taliban authorities appear reluctant to confront the TTP directly, partly due to shared networks and concerns that militant factions could defect to rival groups such as Islamic State Khorasan Province.

Regional and International Reactions

The escalation has triggered widespread international concern as fears grow that sustained conflict could destabilize the wider region.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was closely monitoring developments and urged both sides to comply with international humanitarian law while prioritizing civilian protection.

Guterres spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said that the UN secretary-general is “deeply concerned by the escalation of violence” between Afghanistan and Pakistan, as “He calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities, and he reiterates his call on the parties to resolve any differences through diplomacy.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called for dialogue and restraint, stressing the importance of Islamic solidarity during the holy month of Ramadan and offering Tehran’s assistance in facilitating negotiations.

Russia urged an immediate halt to cross-border attacks and expressed readiness to mediate if both parties agree, while China said it was deeply concerned by the escalation and willing to play a constructive role in reducing tensions through diplomatic channels.

India strongly condemned Pakistan’s air strikes, with Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal describing them as “another attempt by Pakistan to externalize its internal failures.” Islamabad has repeatedly accused New Delhi of supporting anti-Pakistan groups operating from Afghan territory, allegations India denies.

Diplomatic efforts intensified as Türkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan held separate discussions with officials from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia aimed at preventing further escalation. Qatar also engaged Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar in talks focused on regional stability and de-escalation mechanisms.

Britain’s Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper warned of a “significant escalation in tensions” and urged both sides to avoid further civilian harm and return to mediated dialogue.

Rising Risk of Wider Conflict

Pakistani officials maintain that Islamabad exhausted diplomatic options before resorting to military action. Khawaja Asif said Pakistan had made repeated efforts through bilateral and third-party channels to stabilize relations, but now viewed Afghan actions as direct aggression. “Our patience has reached its limit. Now it is an open war. Now there will be decisive action,” he said.

Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai responded by declaring that Afghanistan would defend its sovereignty, stating the country would “respond to aggression with courage” while urging Pakistan to adopt policies based on good neighborly relations.

With both sides mobilizing forces and exchanging strikes across multiple sectors, analysts warn that continued escalation risks transforming recurring border skirmishes into a sustained interstate conflict, an outcome that could further destabilize an already volatile region at a time of growing militant activity and fragile political balances across South and Central Asia.