22 killed in Pakistani airstrikes on Afghanistan

At least 22 people were killed in two separate Pakistani airstrikes targeting Afghanistan’s Helmand and Kunar provinces.

Pakistan’s Information Ministry said in a statement Thursday morning (October 1) that the strikes targeted militant hideouts in the two provinces.

The Taliban government, however, reported a significantly different toll. Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said Wednesday night that at least nine people, including women and children, were killed and 11 others injured in Pakistani airstrikes in Helmand and Kunar. He said three houses were destroyed in the overnight attacks.

In a post on X, Mujahid condemned the strikes, saying attacks on residential areas in Afghanistan violated international law and constituted a crime.

The latest strikes come amid renewed tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan after several relatively calm months along their border. Islamabad has increasingly blamed armed groups operating from Afghan territory for a series of attacks in Pakistan in recent weeks, including an attack on a mosque.

Pakistan has accused the Taliban government of providing shelter and support to militants using Afghan territory to launch attacks inside Pakistan. The Taliban authorities have repeatedly rejected the allegations, saying they do not allow Afghan soil to be used against other countries.

The two sides have traded accusations amid a recent escalation, with Pakistan carrying out at least two rounds of airstrikes inside Afghanistan.

The conflicting casualty figures from the latest strikes could not be independently verified by international media.