Pakistani authorities have consistently accused the Taliban regime of sheltering Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants within Afghan territory over the past year. The country’s military has repeatedly issued warnings of retaliation against armed adversaries operating from Afghanistan. A day before Pakistan’s military airstrikes and rocket attacks, the President of Pakistan, speaking at the funeral of eight soldiers, vowed retribution against the “terrorists.” Following this declaration, the Pakistani military carried out airstrikes and rocket assaults early on Monday, March 18, targeting areas in the Sabari and Bermel districts of Paktika and Khost provinces. Local sources report that eight individuals, including five family members of a TTP commander, were killed in these attacks. Concurrently, the Taliban, through a statement and by summoning Pakistan’s ambassador, announced heavy assaults on Pakistani military outposts along the Durand Line. The group claims that such attacks have repercussions beyond Pakistan’s control. Additionally, local sources allege sporadic clashes between Taliban fighters and Pakistani border forces occurred yesterday in the provinces of Khost, Kunar, Paktika, and Paktia.
Over the past year, Pakistan has repeatedly claimed that the Taliban have provided sanctuary to thousands of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants in Afghan territory. According to Pakistan’s allegations, the TTP plans and executes attacks on Pakistani military positions from Afghan soil.
The Pakistani military has claimed to have targeted three Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) camps in the provinces of Paktia and Khost with airstrikes, resulting in several casualties. Based on Pakistan claims, that the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), operating from these camps, has been involved in planning and carrying out multiple attacks in Pakistan, including the recent attack in Mir Ali, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which resulted in the deaths of at least seven soldiers of this country.
An X (formerly Twitter) account associated with the Pakistani military also stated that TTP positions in certain areas of Afghan territory have been targeted with three precision laser-guided bomb-carrying aircraft that used 12 bombs.
Simultaneously, local sources from Kunar have reported Pakistani rockets and airstrikes on areas in this province. According to local sources, these attacks occurred between 1:00 AM and 3:00 PM on Sunday, March 17, targeting areas in the Chogam region of Shultan district and some areas in the Sirkanay district of Kunar province, but they did not provide details of the casualties.
Earlier, some media outlets and the Taliban had claimed that Pakistan had launched airstrikes on the residence of Abdullah Shah, a TTP commander, resulting in the deaths of five family members of this TTP member; however, a Pakistani military account claimed that no Pakistani official had mentioned this TTP member. According to the Pakistani military’s claim, the release of a videotape by Abdullah Shah was coordinated with the Taliban in Afghanistan.
Local sources claim that following this attack in the “Laman” area of Bermel district, Paktika province, five family members of Abdullah Shah, a Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) commander, were killed. According to these sources, the victims of this incident included two women, two children, and one man.
Local sources also stated that after the Pakistani airstrike, Taliban fighters clashed with Pakistani border guards in the Angoor Ada area of Paktika and Dand Wa Patan district in Paktia province. According to local sources, this confrontation occurred around 10:00 AM on Monday, March 18, in the passages of Angoor Ada in the Bermel district of Paktika province and Dand Wa Patan district in Paktia province, with both sides using light and heavy weapons against each other.
In response to Pakistan’s attacks on areas in Paktika and Khost provinces, the Taliban have deemed it a violation of Afghan territory. In a statement, the group stated that as a result of Pakistan’s attacks on the Bermel district of Paktika, six people, including three women and three children, were killed, and in a similar event in the Spera district of Khost province, two women lost their lives, and a house was destroyed. The Taliban stated that Pakistan’s attacks constituted an invasion of Afghan soil. The group considered Pakistan’s attacks as reckless and uncalculated actions by “certain Pakistani generals.” The Taliban have also summoned the Pakistani ambassador in Kabul and voiced their protest through him to the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Simultaneously with the Taliban, the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) also condemned Pakistan’s airstrikes on Afghanistan in a statement. According to this group’s claim, the Pakistani military targeted displaced persons from Waziristan.
It is worth mentioning that detailed information regarding human casualties and financial damages from these clashes has not yet been provided. However, local sources in Paktia have confirmed the killing of a Taliban fighter as a result of these clashes.
Dawn, a Pakistani newspaper has also reported the death of one soldier and injuries to two other military personnel. According to the report, Pakistani troops are on “high alert,” and a “state of emergency” has been declared in all medical facilities in the region.
The Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs has stated that their country has conducted “counter-terrorism operations” based on intelligence in border areas inside Afghan territory. According to a press release from the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the target of these operations was fighters affiliated with the Hafiz Gul Bahadur group, responsible for multiple attacks inside Pakistan.
In recent days, Pakistan’s special envoy for Afghanistan has claimed that India is providing financial assistance to the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) through Afghanistan, and currently between 5,000 to 6,000 TTP fighters with their families are based in Afghanistan.
Pakistan’s airstrikes and rocket attacks on Afghan soil have also faced various reactions within Afghanistan. In one such reaction, a former Afghan army uniform was donned by the Taliban’s defense minister. On the other hand, an account affiliated with the defense ministry of this group has stated that in response to Pakistan’s “aggression,” their fighters have targeted Pakistani military installations along the Durand Line with heavy weapons.
Some social media users have criticized this Taliban action, while others have stated that the Taliban are the offspring of the Pakistani military and will never have the capability to stand up to their “creator.” According to them, this Taliban maneuver is an attempt to gain public trust and legitimacy, which will not be achieved so easily.
Furthermore, some senior officials of the former government and the acting permanent representative of Afghanistan to the United Nations have labeled Pakistan’s actions as a violation of Afghanistan’s territorial integrity. According to them, Pakistan’s airstrikes on Afghan soil violate international laws.
Naseer Ahmad Faiq, the acting permanent representative of Afghanistan to the United Nations, has stated that Pakistani military airstrikes on Afghan soil, under any pretext, blatantly violate international laws, territorial integrity, and sovereignty of the country.
Meanwhile, Afrasiab Khattak, a Pashtun Pakistani politician, has written in response to Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan soil that Pashtun-populated areas on both sides of the Durand Line have become a center of terrorism in an international game, which contradicts the interests of the local people. He claims that recent violence on both sides of the Durand Line is part of this larger game managed by major powers and their local partners.
Previously, a report by the United Nations Security Council highlighted that the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has gained strength and boldness under the Taliban’s sway in Afghanistan, conducting attacks with increased independence against Pakistan. The report’s findings suggest that the Afghan Taliban typically support the goals of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
According to the UN Security Council report, “Although the Taliban directed Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) fighters not to engage in operations beyond Afghanistan, a significant number disobeyed. Additionally, certain members of the Afghan Taliban have joined the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) viewing it as a religious obligation.”