Taliban Accuses Pakistan of Drone Strikes on Kabul Ahead of Ceasefire After Deadly Border Clashes

Afghanistan’s Taliban government on Thursday accused Pakistan of carrying out two drone strikes on Kabul a day earlier, just hours before the two neighbors agreed to a ceasefire following days of intense fighting that left dozens dead and hundreds wounded on both sides.

The truce, announced Wednesday, temporarily halted the deadliest clashes between Afghanistan and Pakistan since 2021, when the Taliban took power after the fall of the Western-backed government and the withdrawal of US and NATO troops.

Islamabad has not responded to Kabul’s latest accusations, and it remains unclear whether the alleged strikes will affect the fragile ceasefire. The United Nations welcomed the truce on Thursday, urging both countries to end hostilities permanently.

Pakistani officials, speaking anonymously to The Associated Press, said earlier that Pakistani forces had targeted militant hideouts on Wednesday. Khalid Zadran, a spokesperson for the Kabul police chief, said the drone strikes hit a civilian house and a market in the capital on Wednesday afternoon. While no official casualty count was released, hospital sources reported five deaths and dozens of injuries.

Emergency, a humanitarian medical organization operating in Kabul, said victims suffered shrapnel wounds, blunt-force trauma, and burns. Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid initially attributed the explosions to an oil tanker blast.

Cross-border violence between the two countries has surged since October 10, with both sides accusing the other of armed provocations. The ceasefire came after appeals from regional powers amid fears that escalating tensions could destabilize an area where extremist groups such as ISIS and al-Qaeda are seeking to reassert themselves.

According to the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), at least 37 civilians were killed and 425 wounded this week in Afghan provinces including Paktya, Paktika, Kunar, Khost, Kandahar, and Helmand as a result of the cross-border fighting. UNAMA also documented at least 16 civilian casualties from earlier clashes.

“UNAMA calls on all parties to bring a lasting end to hostilities to protect civilians and prevent further loss of life,” the mission said.

Pakistan has not released civilian casualty figures from its side of the border. It has repeatedly accused Afghanistan of harboring militants responsible for attacks inside Pakistan — allegations the Taliban deny.

Pakistani officials said on Thursday that security forces had killed several militants who crossed over from Afghanistan into Mohmand district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The two nations share a 2,611-kilometer (1,622-mile) border, known as the Durand Line, which Afghanistan has never formally recognized.