Pakistan confirms operation in Afghanistan border area, claims 26 militants were killed; Taliban spokesman says those killed were civilians, including children
Pakistan says it hit TTP-linked targets along the Afghan border and killed 26 militants. The Taliban says civilians, including children, were killed in the strikes.
Intelligence analysis by GPT-5.4 Mini
Pakistan and the Taliban are giving sharply different accounts of overnight strikes near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. Islamabad says the operation targeted militant hideouts with precision, while Kabul says civilians were hit, including children.
Pakistan says it hit hidden militant places near the Afghan border, while the Taliban says homes were bombed and children died. It is like two neighbors telling very different stories about the same night, and no one outside can yet fully check what happened.
Analysis
What Pakistan says
Pakistan’s information minister, Attaullah Tarar, said Pakistani forces carried out intelligence-based strikes in border areas adjacent to Afghanistan and killed 26 people described by Islamabad as militants linked to the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). He said the targets included what he called masterminds, planners, a training center, a hideout, and an ammunition storage site.
Tarar linked the operation to recent attacks inside Pakistan, including incidents in Musa Darah, North Waziristan, and a suicide attack in Bannu. He said Pakistan would continue operations against militancy that it says is backed from outside the country.
What the Taliban says
The Taliban government’s spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, accused Pakistan of violating Afghan airspace and striking several locations near the Durand Line. He said civilians were killed in the attacks and shared images he said showed children among the dead.
According to Mujahid, strikes hit homes in Khost, Paktika, and Kunar provinces. He claimed 11 children, one woman, and one elderly man were killed, and that additional people were injured.
What can be verified
BBC says it cannot independently verify the casualty figures or the competing claims from either side. The broader pattern is clear, though: Pakistan and Afghanistan have had repeated border clashes and airstrikes in recent months, with Pakistan accusing Kabul of sheltering militants and the Taliban rejecting that charge. The Taliban, in turn, has repeatedly said civilians are being killed in Pakistani attacks.
A BBC Pashto report also quoted a local official in Khost saying nine people were killed and 10 injured in one attack, while a resident in Paktika said a strike happened around 1 a.m. on Tuesday night.
Key points
- Pakistan says it struck TTP-linked targets in border areas and killed 26 militants.
- The Taliban says Pakistani airstrikes killed civilians, including children, in Afghan provinces near the border.
- BBC says it cannot independently verify the casualty figures from either side.
- The dispute comes amid repeated border clashes and airstrikes in recent months.
- Pakistan says it is acting against militancy; the Taliban denies sheltering such groups.
If Pakistan’s strikes did hit militant infrastructure as claimed, Islamabad could reduce the threat from groups it says are planning attacks. That could also strengthen its argument that it is acting to protect civilians inside Pakistan.
If the Taliban’s account is closer to the truth, the strikes could deepen anger in Afghanistan and raise the risk of retaliation. Even if militants were targeted, the lack of independent verification leaves room for mistrust, escalation, and more cross-border violence.
