Pakistan strikes Afghan provinces

Pakistan's air strikes hit Kandahar, Paktia and Khost provinces on September twenty-fourth, killing four civilians according to Afghanistan's Taliban government in the latest escalation between the two countries.

Pakistan claims military targets

Pakistan said its forces struck ten targets in Afghanistan, adding the strikes were strictly limited to identified military objectives without specifying their locations.

“strictly limited to identified military objectives”

Second strike in one week

This is the second wave of Pakistani air strikes on Afghan territory in the past week, following a deadly attack on a police facility in Pakistan on September eighteenth.

Taliban promises response

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid labelled the attack as reckless, careless, and hostile, saying the Taliban would mount an appropriate response and it will have adverse consequences for the Pakistani military.

“reckless, careless, and hostile”

Civilians report no military presence

In Khost, a local eyewitness told Reuters strikes happened around midnight with houses damaged but no casualties reported. Another resident said there is no military base there, only homes of ordinary civilians.

“there is no military base here, nor are there any military personnel”

Earlier strikes killed three civilians

Earlier this week, Pakistan said it launched air strikes in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region killing twenty-eight militants. In Kunar province, at least three civilians were killed, confirmed by the UN mission Unama.

Ceasefire collapses after months of calm

The Taliban and Pakistan had enjoyed three months of relative calm until fighting reignited following the September eighteenth attack on a mosque at a police compound in north-western Pakistan, which killed at least thirty-one people.