At least three people were killed in Pakistani airstrikes on northeastern Afghanistan on Monday (September 21, 2026), Afghan officials said, threatening to reignite tensions between the neighbours after about three months of relative calm.

Relations between the former allies have remained strained since February, when the two sides fought their worst clashes in years.

The dispute centres on militancy in Pakistan, with Islamabad accusing Kabul of harbouring militants who stage cross-border attacks from Afghan territory. Afghanistan’s Taliban government denies the charges and says militancy is Pakistan’s internal problem.

The airstrikes came days after a police facility in northwestern Pakistan was attacked, killing at least 16 people.

At least one house in Kunar province was hit in the strikes, killing three members of the same family and injuring four others, Hamdullah Fitrat, deputy spokesperson of the Taliban government, said in a post on X.

“In Barmal district of Paktika [province], two locations… were bombarded, destroying one shop and one unoccupied house, with no casualties reported,” he said.

Pakistan’s military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Afghanistan launched drones against Pakistan in July, which Islamabad said its forces had intercepted and shot down.

The worst single incident occurred in March, when more than 400 people were killed in a Pakistani airstrike on Kabul, which the Taliban said targeted a drug rehabilitation centre. Islamabad denied the charge, saying it “precisely targeted military installations and terrorist support infrastructure.”

Pakistan has a large air force, with 422 combat aircraft and more than 260 helicopters, according to data from the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS). Afghanistan has no fighter jets but is known to possess at least 6 aircraft and 23 helicopters, and drones that have previously been used in fighting with Pakistan.

Cross-border fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan has killed nearly 500 civilians in Afghanistan and wounded over 1,000 others between October and the end of June, the United Nations said on Tuesday (July 28, 2026).

In a report on the human rights situation, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan said it had documented 499 civilians killed and 1,216 wounded by the fighting between the neighbours that has defied international peace efforts.

In one case, the report said, civilians trying to rescue others from the rubble of an airstrike were hit by a second one. The report also explores other human rights issues, including a deadly crackdown on protests in western Afghanistan over restrictions on women’s clothing, and decrees that essentially legalise child marriage.

Pakistan and Afghanistan have been fighting on and off for months. Tension escalated significantly in February, when Afghan forces launched a raid into Pakistan in retaliation for Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan, and Islamabad declared it was in “open war.”

Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of harbouring militants who carry out deadly attacks that have killed thousands over the years in Pakistan, especially the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan. The group is allied with the Afghan Taliban, which has ruled Afghanistan since it seized power in 2021 amid the chaotic withdrawal of U.S.-led troops. Kabul denies the allegation.

In the deadliest attack of the fighting, a Pakistani airstrike hit a drug treatment centre in the Afghan Capital, Kabul, in March, killing hundreds of civilians. Rights group Amnesty International said last week the bombing should be investigated as a possible war crime.

Pakistan has not given an overall figure for civilian casualties caused by the cross-border fighting in its territory. The U.N. mission, known by its acronym UNAMA, noted it is only mandated to monitor incidents in Afghanistan. In a written response to UNAMA’s report, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said Afghanistan’s Taliban government “continues to maintain a permissive environment for a range of [militant] organisations”.

The response did not mention Afghan civilian casualties but said Pakistan’s military strikes “were directed exclusively at identified terrorist hideouts, sanctuaries, and support infrastructure linked to groups responsible for attacks inside Pakistan.”

The hundreds of civilian casualties listed by UNAMA include 5 children who were killed in two successive airstrikes on a residential building in the eastern province of Paktia on June 28. At least 185 others were wounded. Most of the deaths and injuries were caused by the second strike, when locals were trying to rescue the victims of the first one.

“International humanitarian law provides special protections for medical personnel and humanitarian workers, including first responders. Attacks against them while performing their duties are strictly prohibited,” said Fiona Frazer, director of human rights at UNAMA.

UNAMA’s report also highlighted problems faced by women, who are subject to draconian restrictions by Afghanistan’s Taliban government. They include a ban on education beyond primary school, a strict dress code, bans on working in nearly all professions and a requirement to be accompanied by a male relative when outside the home.

The report detailed a crackdown in the western city of Herat in June, where at least 30 women were arrested on allegations of dress code violations. At least one person was killed and several others were injured when authorities opened fire during a rare protest against the detentions.

Rules governing women’s clothing stipulate they can only go out in public when wearing full hijab — which includes a headscarf and robe covering the entire body — as well as a face covering that leaves only the eyes visible. The regulations are policed by the feared Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice. However, interpretations of the rules and what constitutes wearing the hijab correctly vary and can be arbitrarily enforced.

The UNAMA report said Vice and Virtue officials visited health clinics and shops in various parts of the country to advise them to refuse entry to women not accompanied by a male relative. The report also said new rules on separation in marriage “implicitly sanction child marriage” by allowing for marriage contracts to be arranged for minors.

India on Monday (June 29, 2026) strongly condemned Pakistan’s air strikes on Afghan territory in which several civilians were killed, calling them a “blatant act of aggression” and a “direct threat” to regional peace and stability.

In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) also said, “It reflects Pakistan’s persistent pattern of reckless behaviour and its futile attempt to externalise internal failures through desperate acts of violence beyond its borders.”

Pakistan on Monday (June 29, 2026) said its security forces killed 29 militants in a ground operation near the Afghan border and subsequent cross-border strikes, as Islamabad and Kabul summoned each other’s Charge d’affaires to lodge diplomatic protests over the latest escalation.

However, the Afghan foreign ministry in a series of posts on X alleged that Pakistani air strikes on residential areas killed 36 civilians, including women and children, and injured 163 others. It described the strikes as a violation of international law, humanitarian principles and Afghanistan’s sovereignty.

Pakistan has not immediately responded to the Afghan allegations.

In its statement, the MEA said, “India strongly condemns Pakistan’s air-strikes on Afghan territory that have resulted in several civilian casualties, including women and children. This blatant act of aggression by Pakistan is an assault on Afghanistan’s sovereignty and a direct threat to regional peace and stability.”

India conveys its condolences to Afghan families that have lost loved ones, prays for early recovery of those injured and reiterates its “unwavering support” for Afghanistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, the statement said.

Pakistan announced that its security forces have carried out an intelligence-based ground operation along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, followed by “calibrated strikes” against terrorist hideouts and safe havens in the border region, killing 29 militants.

There was no immediate comment from Kabul.

The United Nations mission in Afghanistan said on Thursday (June 11, 2026) it had documented the deaths of 13 civilians, mainly children and women, from Pakistani airstrikes on eastern Afghanistan the previous day, confirming the death toll given by Afghan authorities.

Pakistan had dismissed as propaganda a statement by Afghan government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid on Wednesday that the airstrikes in the provinces of Khost, Kunar and Paktika had killed 13 civilians — 11 children, one woman and one man.

The strikes shattered a month of calm following what Islamabad previously described as “open war” between the neighbours. The conflict has so far defied international efforts to bring a lasting peace.

The UN mission in Afghanistan, known by its acronym UNAMA, said in a post on X that it had “documented 13 civilian deaths and 10 injuries, mainly children and women, from airstrikes” overnight between Tuesday and Wednesday.

“UNAMA reiterates its call for de-escalation, a durable ceasefire, protection of civilians, reopening of border crossings particularly for humanitarian assistance, and dialogue to resolve differences,” it said. The border has been closed for months, disrupting trade and transportation and stranding thousands of people.

Hundreds of people have been killed in the fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan since February, when Afghanistan attacked Pakistan in retaliation for Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan. Several rounds of internationally mediated peace talks have failed to produce a lasting truce.

Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of harbouring militants who carry out deadly attacks inside Pakistan, especially the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP. The group is separate from, but allied with, the Afghan Taliban, which has ruled Afghanistan since it seized power in the country in 2021, after the chaotic withdrawal of U.S.-led troops. Kabul denies the charge.

Pakistan says its airstrikes targeted militants

Pakistan said it carried out strikes along the border with Afghanistan on Wednesday (June 10, 2026) to target militant camps and hideouts.

At a weekly news conference in Islamabad, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said that the strikes were conducted in response to multiple recent militant attacks inside the country.

“We carried out these strikes to target safe havens, masterminds and planners belonging to Fitna al-Khawarij,” Mr. Andrabi said, using a term the government applies to the Pakistani Taliban and other militant groups. “We acted on credible intelligence, and there was selective targeting of their hideouts.”

He said the safety of Pakistanis remains the government’s top priority and that operations against militants would continue. “We continue to undertake military strikes with precision and accuracy, eliminating terrorist hideouts,” he said.

Mr. Andrabi declined to comment directly on the UN report about the civilian casualties, saying authorities would need to review its contents. However, he questioned the UN methodology in documenting the casualties.

“What is their methodology for measuring that?” he said. “Our strikes were precise and targeted at the hideouts and camps of these terrorists.”

Fighting has been concentrated mainly along the border

Pakistan in February declared it was in open war with Afghanistan, following a surge in militant attacks on its civilians and security forces. The fighting has concentrated mainly along the border area but Pakistan has also carried out airstrikes on the Afghan capital, Kabul.

In March, an airstrike hit a drug-treatment center in the city, with Afghan officials saying more than 400 people were killed. Pakistan disputed the toll and denied targeting civilians, saying it had targeted an ammunition depot.

Wednesday’s strikes come months after China hosted peace talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Beijing later said they had agreed not to escalate their conflict and to explore a solution.

Authorities in Pakistan have said China and some other friendly countries were still encouraging both sides to reach an agreement for durable peace.

Pakistani security forces killed 35 terrorists and captured three high-profile senior commanders during an ongoing intelligence-based operation in Balochistan’s Mangla Zarghoon Ghar area.

A spokesperson for the Balochistan Government, Shahid Rind, told the media in Quetta on Sunday night (May 17, 2026) that the operation, which began on May 13, saw the deaths of 35 terrorists over the past four days.

“The operation was against the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and their proxy groups in Balochistan,” Mr. Rind said.

Mr. Rind mentioned that the three captured commanders are high-profile figures, and the operation was conducted based on intelligence gathered from previously captured militants in the province.

“The security forces also destroyed several base camps in the Mangla Zarghoon Ghar region,” he added.

He noted that additional operations are underway in the province, based on credible, actionable intelligence aimed at apprehending the facilitators, handlers, and financial supporters of these terrorist elements.

The Pakistan military is yet to release a statement regarding this latest anti-terror operation.

Last Wednesday (May 13, 2026), five soldiers, including a major, were killed during a clean-up operation against terrorists in Balochistan’s Barkhan district, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), which also stated that at least seven terrorists were killed during that operation.

Pakistan’s foreign minister said Monday (March 23, 2026) that the country remains committed to “eradicating the menace of terrorism”, as the clock ticked down to the end of a temporary ceasefire with Afghanistan.

Both countries last Wednesday (March 18, 2026) announced a halt to weeks of hostilities for the Id al-Fitr holiday marking the end of Ramadan, agreeing to a temporary ceasefire until midnight Monday.

But in a message to mark Pakistan Day, a national holiday, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar indicated that the country’s approach to the conflict had not changed.

“Pakistan remains firmly committed to eradicate the menace of terrorism,” he said in a statement. “Pakistan’s actions inside Afghanistan… are directed towards this goal.”

On Sunday, the Taliban government and a medical source said one person was killed by a mortar shell fired by Pakistan in the eastern border province of Kunar.

Afghanistan and Pakistan have been locked in conflict for months over claims from Islamabad that Kabul is harbouring extremists behind cross-border attacks on its territory.

The Taliban authorities deny the claim.

In his own Pakistan Day message, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday said military action inside Afghanistan was “a symbol of our national resolve against terrorism”.

“We will not allow any harm to the peace and security of our country,” he added.

Identification

The Id truce came after a Pakistani strike on a drug rehabilitation centre in Kabul last Monday, which Afghan authorities said killed more than 400.

The Norwegian Refugee Council, an international NGO, said the following day that “hundreds” were killed and injured.

Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qani told AFP on Monday that identification of the bodies was still ongoing and new funerals were expected to take place in the coming days.

About 50 bodies were buried in a mass grave in Kabul last Wednesday (March 18, 2026).

On Saturday (March 21, 2026), the Afghan Health Ministry called on families to contact the forensic medicine department to help identify “dozens of bodies”.

The UN assistance mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) on Monday (March 23, 2026)said preliminary figures from their investigation indicated that there were 143 killed and 119 wounded.

But a spokesperson told AFP the toll was likely to increase, with the process slowed by difficulties in identifying some bodies.

According to a UN toll last Tuesday (March 17, 2026), not taking into account the drug rehabilitation centre strike, at least 76 Afghan civilians have been killed in the fighting since it intensified on February 26.

More than 115,000 people have been displaced in Afghanistan, it added.

“The calls for a ceasefire continue… China has offered to mediate and the Secretary General has said that he would support such a mediation,” the UNAMA spokesperson said.

ndia on Tuesday (March 17, 2026) “unequivocally” condemned Pakistan’s bombing of Omid Drug Addiction Treatment Hospital in Afghanistan capital Kabul on the night of March 16 terming it “barbaric” and “unconscionable”.

The remarks from the official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) came hours after the bombing that marked an escalation in the ongoing conflict between Pakistan and the Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. The Taliban administration in Kabul had described the attack on the drug rehabilitation centre as a violation of Afghan airspace and revealed that the bombing led to the death of around 400 individuals who were seeking treatment in the facility.

‘Externalising internal failures’

“This heinous act of aggression by Pakistan is also a blatant assault on Afghanistan’s sovereignty and a direct threat to regional peace and stability. It reflects Pakistan’s persistent pattern of reckless behaviour and its repeated attempts to externalise internal failures through increasingly desperate acts of violence beyond its borders,” said Randhir Jaiswal, official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs.

The Omid Drug Addiction Treatment Hospital is a former U.S. military base that has been converted into a drug addiction treatment centre for Afghanistan’s drug addicts. The military base was taken over by the Taliban and converted into a rudimentary care centre for large number of Afghanistan’s drug addicts, after the end of the Ashraf Ghani government in August 2021.

According to Khaama Press of Afghanistan, the Pakistan Air Force has continued bombing across Afghanistan over the past two days and apart from the Omid Drug Addiction Treatment Hospital in Kabul, it has also bombed targets in Nangarhar province including Achin, Shinwari districts and the Jalalabad airport. Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman of the Taliban administration, said, “Pakistani military regime has once again violated Afghanistan’s airspace and targeted a drug rehabilitation hospital in Kabul resulting in the death and injury of addicts who were undergoing treatment.”

Responding to the incident, which marks the largest number of civilian deaths in a single airstrike since the conflict flared up last year between the two sides, Mr. Jaiswal said: “India unequivocally condemns Pakistan’s barbaric airstrike on the Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital in Kabul on the night of March 16. This is a cowardly and unconscionable act of violence that has claimed the lives of a large number of civilians in a facility which can by no means be justified as a military target.”

Pakistan has claimed that the hospital was serving as an arms and ammunition depot. Responding to this, the Ministry of External Affairs said Pakistan is now trying to “dress up a massacre as a miliary operation”.

Several Afghanistan cricketers have spoken out against the civilian casualties reported in Kabul following airstrikes by Pakistan, expressing grief and calling for justice.

Afghanistan’s Deputy Government spokesman said early Tuesday (March 17, 2026) the death toll from an airstrike by Pakistan that hit a hospital treating drug users in the Afghan capital Kabul has increased to 400. Pakistan had earlier denied that it had hit a hospital.

The latest bombardment highlights rapidly deteriorating relations between Pakistan and the Taliban administration as both sides continue to trade accusations over security issues.

Rashid Khan took to X to express his outrage, saying he was “deeply saddened by the latest reports of civilian casualties in Kabul”. The all-rounder added that targeting civilian homes, educational facilities, or medical infrastructure, whether intentional or accidental, amounts to a war crime.

“I am deeply saddened by the latest reports of civilian casualties as a result of Pakistani airstrikes in Kabul. Targeting civilian homes, educational facilities or medical infrastructure, either intentional or by mistake, is a war crime. The sheer disregard for human lives, especially during the holy month of Ramadan, is sickening and deeply concerning. It will only fuel division and hatred. I call upon the UN and other human rights agencies to thoroughly investigate this latest atrocity and hold the perpetrators to account. I stand with my Afghan people in this difficult time. We shall heal, and we will rise as a nation. We always do. Inshallah!” Rashid Khan wrote.

Veteran all-rounder Mohammad Nabi shared a video on X, writing, “Tonight in Kabul, hope was extinguished at a hospital. Young men seeking treatment were murdered in a bombing by the Pakistani military regime. Mothers waited at the gates, calling their sons’ names. On the 28th night of Ramadan, their lives were cut short.”

Similarly, Ibrahim Zadran, who is the captain of the T20I side, condemned the air strike by Pakistan. “Tonight I heard a massive explosion here in Kabul. Moments later, we saw flames rising into the sky from a hospital. Our brothers who intended to fast tomorrow are now gone, or wounded. My thoughts are with every family grieving tonight. Kabul is in pain. We pray for justice.”