Pakistan bombs Kabul, issues proclamations against Taliban regime
The Afghan response to Pakistan’s bombings has escalated the never-ending conflict. Pakistan promises "decisive" action against the bases of "anti-Pakistan terrorists" in Afghanistan. Caught between the two, China calls for moderation. Meanwhile, 21 million Afghans already living in poverty risk paying the price of this never-ending conflict.
Milan (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan have intensified again today with a series of cross-border attacks and air strikes in Kabul and Kandahar, with Pakistan explicitly describing the situation as “open war”.
After days of Pakistani raids against what Islamabad calls Taliban bases in Afghan territory, the Taliban-led Afghan government announced an overnight offensive against Pakistani military posts in the border areas, prompting a swift and harsh response from Islamabad.
According to Taliban authorities, the operation affected several provinces in the east of the country, most notably Nangarhar, Nuristan, Kunar, Khost, Paktia, and Paktika. Pakistan, for its part, has accused the Taliban of opening fire without provocation in the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
At dawn, Pakistan launched air strikes against the Afghan capital Kabul and the southern provinces of Kandahar and Paktika. Clashes were also reported near the Torkham crossing, a strategic point between Peshawar (Pakistan) and Jalalabad (Afghanistan).
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid stated that Afghanistan’s offensive had caused numerous casualties among enemy soldiers, a claim denied by the Pakistani government.
On the Pakistani side, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that Pakistani forces were able to "crush" the enemy, reporting 274 Afghan Taliban fighters killed at 73 different posts along the 2,600-kilometre border between the two countries.
The conflict is rooted in months of mutual accusations. Pakistan claims that Afghanistan hosts and supports armed groups responsible for attacks on its territory, including suicide attacks in the capital, Islamabad. The Taliban deny this, accusing Pakistan of indiscriminately targeting civilians.
The international community has expressed grave concern over the latest outbreak of violence, which comes just months after a fragile ceasefire was reached in October with the mediation of Qatar and Turkey. The United Nations has called for immediate de-escalation.
China, often affected by the actions of the local Taliban in Pakistan but with friendly relations with the Afghan government, has also called for calm through foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning, while Saudi Arabia has launched diplomatic consultations with Islamabad.
The most significant aspect of this new phase is that Pakistani attacks have reportedly targeted Taliban government facilities for the first time, not just alleged terrorist targets. This move now risks turning a border crisis into a wider conflict, even though Afghanistan knows full well that it lacks the means to engage in an all-out clash with the Pakistani military.
Pakistan's stance is also influenced by domestic politics. The Armed Forces under Field Marshal Asim Munir – which managed to regain power after former Prime Minister Imran Khan was convicted and jailed – finds itself facing the threat of homegrown Taliban, who are exploiting widespread dissatisfaction, especially in the country's peripheral areas.
Those who risk paying the heaviest price right now are once again ordinary Afghans, still suffering almost five years after the Taliban returned to power in Kabul.
“This new escalation of violence risks plunging the country back into the nightmare of war," said in a statement Dejan Panic, programme director for Emergency, an Italian NGO operating in Afghanistan with its medical centres since 1999.
"Even in 2026, approximately 21 million Afghans are expected to require humanitarian aid due to the economic, food, and health crises. Another conflict would bring people to their knees,” he warns.
For this reason, “We call for an immediate end to hostilities, the protection of civilians, and dialogue for a diplomatic resolution to a conflict that risks involving the entire region with unpredictable consequences.”
.png)
