Pakistan launches deadly strikes on Afghanistan
#Pakistan Afghanistan strikes #Cross-border conflict #Civilian casualties #Taliban response #Suicide bombings retaliation #Militant camps #Border tensions
📌 Key Takeaways
- Pakistan conducted air strikes on Afghanistan killing at least 18 people including civilians
- Pakistan claimed the strikes targeted militant camps in response to suicide bombings
- Afghanistan condemned the attacks as violations of international law
- The strikes occurred despite a fragile ceasefire agreed in October 2023
📖 Full Retelling
Pakistan launched multiple overnight air strikes on Afghanistan's Nangarhar and Paktika provinces near the border on May 23, 2024, in retaliation for recent suicide bombings in Pakistan, claiming to have targeted seven alleged militant camps and hideouts. The Taliban reported that at least 18 people were killed, including women and children, with one family in Girdi Kas village losing 18 members out of 23. Afghanistan condemned the attacks, stating they targeted civilian homes and a religious school, while Pakistan's Ministry of Information confirmed the strikes as 'intelligence based selective targeting' of terrorist groups including the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan and Islamic State-Khorasan Province. The recent attacks come after the two nations agreed to a fragile ceasefire in October 2023 following deadly cross-border clashes, though subsequent fighting has continued, with Pakistan accusing the Afghan Taliban of failing to take action against militants sheltered in Afghanistan who were responsible for attacks including one on a Shia mosque in Islamabad earlier this month. The Taliban's defense ministry condemned the strikes as a 'blatant violation of Afghanistan's territorial integrity' and 'clear breach of international law,' warning of an appropriate response while criticizing Pakistan's intelligence capabilities, as the neighboring countries with a 1,600-mile border continue to navigate complex security challenges despite recent diplomatic efforts including the Saudi-mediated release of three Pakistani soldiers captured during border clashes last October.
🏷️ Themes
Cross-border conflict, Counter-terrorism, Civilian casualties, International law
📚 Related People & Topics
Civilian casualty
Civilians killed, injured, or imprisoned by non-civilians
A civilian casualty occurs when a civilian is killed or injured by non-civilians, mostly law enforcement officers, military personnel, rebel group forces, or terrorists. Under the law of war, it refers to civilians who perish or suffer wounds as a result of wartime acts. The term is generally applie...
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Sanction
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Volodymyr Zelenskyy
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Original Source
Pakistan launches deadly strikes on Afghanistan 19 hours ago Share Save Ottilie Mitchell and Yama Bariz , BBC Afghan Share Save Pakistan has carried out multiple overnight air strikes on Afghanistan, which the Taliban has said killed at least 18 people, including women and children. Islamabad said the attacks targeted seven alleged militant camps and hideouts near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and that they had been launched after recent suicide bombings in Pakistan. Afghanistan condemned the attacks, saying they targeted multiple civilian homes and a religious school. The fresh strikes come after the two countries agreed to a fragile ceasefire in October following deadly cross-border clashes, though subsequent fighting has taken place. The Taliban's defence ministry said the strikes targeted civilian areas of Nangarhar and Paktika provinces and had killed dozens of people. In Girdi Kas village, in the Bihsud district of Nangarhar, a man named Shahabuddin told reporters while pointing at his destroyed house that of 23 members of his family, only five had survived the attack. Local Taliban spokesman Sayed Taib Hamd said that 18 members of the family had been killed. The BBC had earlier been told about 20 people were thought to have died. No deaths have been reported so far in the other areas hit. A guesthouse and a religious school were targeted in the Bermal and Urgun districts of Paktika province, but they were empty at the time of the attacks, local officials and locals told the BBC. Pakistan's Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said it had carried out "intelligence based selective targeting of seven terrorist camps and hideouts". In a statement on X, it said the targets included members of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan, which the government refers to as "Fitna al Khawarij," along with their affiliates and the Islamic State-Khorasan Province. The ministry described the strikes as "a retributive response" to recent suicide bombings in Pakistan by te...
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