Villagers inspect damage caused by overnight cross-border fighting between Pakistani and Afghan forces, in a village in Bajaur, a district in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan, Friday, February 27, 2026. (AP Photo)
Afghanistan on Wednesday accused Pakistan of launching new air strikes on its territory, saying the attacks killed at least 13 people, most of them children, and wounded 14 others.Read also | ‘Dressing up massacre as military operation’: India rebukes Pakistan at UN over Afghan strikes Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman for the Afghan Taliban-led regime, said the strikes hit Khost, Kunar and Paktika provinces. “A crime. Last night, the Pakistani army once again violated Afghan airspace and bombed civilian homes in Kunar, Khost and Paktika provinces,” Mujahid said on the X website.
He added: “These attacks resulted in the killing of 11 children, a woman, and an elderly man, and the injury of 14 others, including women and children.
He said: “We strongly condemn this humanitarian crime and this aggression.” Pakistan did not immediately acknowledge the strikes. The accusations come amid broader regional tensions, including renewed hostilities between the United States and Iran in the Middle East and unrest in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, where protests have turned violent. The two countries have been engaged in months of cross-border clashes that have killed hundreds since late February, when Afghanistan launched retaliatory attacks following Pakistani air strikes.
The temporary ceasefire agreement led to a halt to the fighting from time to time, but it did not last. Islamabad accuses Kabul of harboring militants, especially the Pakistani Taliban, which it says carry out attacks inside Pakistan. The group is separate from but allied with the Afghan Taliban, which has ruled Afghanistan since taking power in 2021 after the US-led withdrawal. Kabul denies this accusation.(with AP input)