Kabul: Afghan authorities under the Taliban government say that mortar and rocket fire fired from Pakistan killed four people and injured 70 others along the border on Monday, further straining already fragile peace efforts between the two neighbouring countries, Reuters reported.
The strikes hit residential neighbourhoods and the Syed Jamaluddin Afghani University in Asadabad, the capital of Kunar province, with around 30 of the wounded reportedly being students, women and children, according to Taliban deputy spokesperson Hamdullah Fitrat.
In a statement posted on X, Fitrat described the incident as a deliberate attack on civilians and educational facilities. “We strongly condemn these attacks by the Pakistani military regime, in which ordinary people, academic, and educational institutions were targeted, and declare them unforgivable war crimes,” he said, repeating phrases similar to those used by Kabul in previous cross‑border confrontations.
Pakistan Rejects Taliban Claim
Pakistan’s information ministry rejected the Taliban’s claims, labelling them “continuous propaganda,” and insisted that its operations against Afghan‑based militant networks are carried out transparently, in a pre‑announced manner, and backed by precise evidence that only terrorist infrastructure is targeted.
The Pakistani military did not issue a detailed public comment on the Kunar incident, holding to its wider position that all its actions are aimed solely at counter‑terrorism targets and not at civilians.
Sour Relations
Relations between the two countries, once close allies, have soured significantly since February, when the worst border violence in years flared up. Pakistan described its airstrikes inside Afghan territory as precision strikes aimed at dismantling militant strongholds, while Kabul portrayed them as indiscriminate attacks on villages and civilian infrastructure.
Islamabad continues to accuse the Taliban of harbouring groups that launch attacks on Pakistani soil, a charge the movement denies, arguing that militant violence within Pakistan stems from internal factors rather than external support.
A key flashpoint emerged in March when Pakistan carried out an airstrike on the Omar Addiction Treatment Hospital in Kabul, a drug rehabilitation facility. The Taliban claimed the strike killed over 400 people, but Pakistan rejected that figure, maintaining it had “precisely targeted military installations and terrorist support infrastructure”.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan later estimated the death toll from the hospital attack at 143, underscoring the wide gap between Kabul’s narrative, Islamabad’s stance, and independent international assessments.
China Plays Mediator
China, acting as a mediator, announced earlier this month that Afghanistan and Pakistan had agreed during talks in Urumqi to seek a comprehensive settlement to their long‑running conflict, renewing hopes for a lasting ceasefire.
While large‑scale clashes have eased since the Urumqi talks were unveiled, scattered exchanges of fire have continued along the frontier. Pakistani security officials reported that Afghan mortar shelling on April 18 killed three people in the northern Bajaur region, an incident that underscores the ongoing cycle of retaliation even as diplomatic channels work to calm tensions.
