Pakistani airstrikes in Afghanistan kill dozens, including women, children

Kabul: The Pakistani military has reportedly carried out airstrikes once again in civilian areas of Afghanistan’s Paktika and Kunar provinces, killing and injuring dozens of civilians, including women and children, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said on Monday.

Condemning what he described as a “cowardly act of aggression” by Pakistani forces, Mujahid said that the attack took place on Sunday night in the Gayan and Tsamkani districts of Paktia and the Manogai district of Kunar.

Taking to social media platform X, the Taliban spokesperson said, “Last night, the Pakistani military once again carried out airstrikes on civilian areas in Gayan District of Paktika Province, Tsamkani District of Paktia Province, and Manogai District of Kunar Province, Afghanistan. The attacks resulted in the deaths and injuries of dozens of civilians, including women and children. We strongly condemn this cowardly act of aggression and consider it a crime and an act of brutality.”

This latest incident comes amid escalating tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan over the past few months, with repeated exchanges of fire and growing concerns over civilian casualties.

Meanwhile, former US Ambassador to Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, strongly condemned the attack, stating Pakistan had once again ignored repeated international and domestic calls for negotiations, opting instead for military action that resulted in the death and injuries of several civilians.

“Ignoring the calls from around the world and from many Pakistanis for negotiations to resolve their differences with their neighbour, once again Pakistan has attacked Afghanistan, again killing and injuring many. I have consistently condemned Pakistan’s killing of innocent Afghans. I do it again today. I also point out that Islamabad has not responded to the many ideas and proposals that the Taliban government have said they agree with,” Khalilzad posted on X.

He asked whether Islamabad was genuinely interested in a settlement, saying, “But now, in the face of the ongoing total lack of any constructive effort or response from Pakistan, I think it’s time to ask: does Islamabad even want a settlement?”

“Is this conflict, on Islamabad’s side, even about what it claims? Or does the Pakistani establishment in fact have other objectives? What might they be? An unstable Afghanistan? Is the Pakistani establishment being rewarded by China to create circumstances that make Afghanistan susceptible to increased Chinese influence? Or both,” he added.

According to Khalilzad, if such objectives are indeed driving Pakistan’s approach, they would run counter to US interests, as increased instability would likely lead to an increased safe haven for anti-US terrorists, especially ISIS-K, while increased Chinese influence in Afghanistan poses a broader geopolitical challenge.

“If these are actual Pakistani objectives, it’s no surprise that the Pakistani establishment does not articulate them publicly,” he noted.

Earlier this month, the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned Pakistan’s charge d’affaires in Kabul to lodge a strong protest over the violation of Afghanistan’s airspace and Pakistani airstrikes on residential homes that killed 13 civilians.

This move came after Taliban spokesperson Mujahid confirmed that the attack in Afghanistan’s Kunar, Khost, and Paktika provinces on the night of June 9 killed 11 children, one woman and an elderly man, while 14 other women and children were injured.

IANS