At least 46 people, mostly women and children, were killed in airstrikes carried out by Pakistani military aircraft in Afghanistan's eastern Paktika province on December 24, Reuters reported citing Afghan Taliban officials. The airstrikes, which targeted four locations, also left six others injured, said Hamdullah Fitrat, a deputy spokesman for the Taliban, on December 25.
In response to the bombing, Afghanistan’s foreign office summoned Pakistan’s head of mission in Kabul to deliver a formal protest note, warning of possible consequences.
Enayatullah Khowrazmi, spokesperson for the Afghan Ministry of National Defence, condemned the airstrikes, calling them a "blatant violation of all international principles" and an "obvious act of aggression." He added that the Taliban would not leave the incident unanswered.
Pakistani government and military officials have yet to respond to requests for comment on the incident.
A Pakistani official, speaking anonymously, confirmed that the airstrikes targeted a camp associated with the Pakistani Taliban (TTP), an Islamist militant group that operates both in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The TTP, which shares ideological ties with the Afghan Taliban but operates independently, has pledged allegiance to the Afghan Taliban, with the aim of enforcing Islamic law in Pakistan.
The attack comes after a major TTP assault in Pakistan’s South Waziristan area, near the Afghan border, which killed 16 Pakistani security personnel on December 21. In the aftermath of the airstrikes, Afghanistan’s Ministry of Defence identified the victims as “mostly Waziristani refugees,” implying that they were originally from Pakistan's Waziristan region.
The relationship between Pakistan and Afghanistan has long been tense, particularly over allegations that the TTP operates from Afghan soil. Pakistan has accused Afghanistan of sheltering the group, a claim that the Taliban government has denied. The incident adds to ongoing tensions between the two countries, further complicated by a March airstrike in which Pakistan was accused of targeting Afghan territory, killing five women and children. Pakistan described the March strikes as part of "intelligence-based anti-terrorist operations," but did not elaborate on the operations' details.
Follow Daryo's official Instagram and Twitter pages to keep current on world news.
Comments (0)