A senior official in Pakistan has claimed that its military killed at least 70 fighters in cross-border air strikes near Afghanistan, an assertion Kabul has rejected as tensions escalate between the two neighbours, Al Jazeera reported.
Deputy Interior Minister Talal Chaudhry, speaking to Geo News on Sunday, said the raids resulted in heavy militant casualties but provided no evidence. Pakistani state media later suggested the toll may have risen to 80, though there was no formal confirmation.
Pakistan’s military said it carried out early-morning strikes targeting alleged “camps and hideouts” of armed groups blamed for a string of recent attacks, including a suicide bombing at a Shia mosque in Islamabad. Information Minister Attaullah Tarar described the action as “intelligence-based, selective operations” against sites linked to the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and allied factions.
President Asif Ali Zardari defended the strikes as part of Pakistan’s right to protect its citizens from terrorism, saying Islamabad had repeatedly urged Afghan authorities to act against groups using their soil to launch attacks.
Afghanistan, however, denied the allegations and condemned the strikes. The Afghan Ministry of Defence said civilian areas in the eastern provinces of Nangarhar and Paktika were hit, including homes and a religious school, calling the action a violation of its sovereignty.
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid accused Pakistan of targeting civilians and dismissed claims of militant casualties as inaccurate. Local officials from the Afghan Red Crescent Society reported at least 18 deaths and multiple injuries.
Kabul summoned Pakistan’s ambassador to lodge a protest, warning that such actions risk undermining a fragile ceasefire reached after deadly border clashes last year.
