Pakistan Launches Overnight Strikes on Afghan Militant Sites Amid Escalating Conflict

Pakistan conducted overnight military strikes against militant facilities in Afghanistan's Kandahar region as border fighting between the two nations continues to intensify. The conflict, which Pakistan has termed an "open war," has resulted in civilian casualties and represents the deadliest fighting yet between the neighboring countries.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistani forces conducted overnight military operations against militant facilities in Afghanistan’s Kandahar region on Sunday, as border hostilities between the neighboring nations continue without signs of de-escalation.

The cross-border violence, which has featured Pakistani air operations in Afghanistan’s capital city of Kabul, represents the most lethal conflict to date between these South Asian countries. Pakistani officials have characterized the situation as an “open war,” raising alarm about regional security while Middle Eastern conflicts involving the U.S., Israel, and Iran continue to spread.

Pakistani Information Minister Attaullah Tarar announced via social media that military forces had attacked equipment storage locations and “technical support infrastructure” during nighttime operations in Kandahar.

Afghan administration spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid reported that Pakistani forces struck two sites: a daytime security guard facility that was unoccupied during nighttime hours, and a drug treatment facility that sustained minor damage. While he confirmed no deaths occurred, Mujahid stated the attacks demonstrated Pakistan was “continuing to invade and fuel the fire of war.”

Afghanistan’s Defense Ministry announced it launched a retaliatory strike against a Pakistani military installation in Pakistan’s South Waziristan region on Sunday following the Kandahar attacks. Officials claimed the operation devastated much of the facility’s command headquarters and additional structures, causing significant Pakistani military losses.

Pakistan’s Information Ministry dismissed the assertion as “propaganda,” stating that a small unmanned aircraft was shot down and “no military installation or infrastructure was hit.”

Afghan forces also reported conducting operations within Pakistani territory near the borders of Kunar and Nangarhar provinces, alleging they seized a Pakistani military position and killed multiple soldiers. Pakistani officials also denied these allegations.

Pakistani authorities accuse Afghanistan’s Taliban leadership of providing sanctuary to militant organizations, especially the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban, which conducts attacks within Pakistan. Afghan officials reject these accusations, maintaining they prohibit their territory from being used for attacks against neighboring nations.

The current violence began in late February when Afghanistan launched cross-border operations into Pakistan following Pakistani airstrikes within Afghanistan several days prior, which Afghanistan claimed killed only civilians. The hostilities destroyed a ceasefire negotiated by Qatar last October after earlier fighting that resulted in dozens of deaths among soldiers, civilians, and suspected militants.

On Sunday, mortar fire from Afghanistan destroyed a residence in Bajaur, a northwestern Pakistani district, killing at least four family members and injuring two others, according to local government official Adnan Khan.

Both nations have blamed each other for civilian targeting, with dozens of deaths reported.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari stated Saturday that Afghanistan’s government had “crossed a red line” by conducting drone attacks on Pakistani civilian areas, and hours afterward the country reportedly launched strikes against an Afghan drone storage facility.