Pakistan Carries Out Airstrikes In Afghanistan, Claims To Have Killed Over 300

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan  — Pakistan’s military, backed by artillery and aerial power, struck much subject installations heavy wrong Afghanistan overnight aft Pakistan said it was successful “open war” pinch its eastbound neighbor.

Pakistan connected Saturday claimed that much than 330 Afghan forces had been killed since fighting erupted Thursday nighttime during a wide Afghan cross-border onslaught into Pakistan. Afghanistan rejected nan figures arsenic false.

The casualty figures provided by either broadside could not beryllium independently confirmed.

The fighting was successful consequence to Pakistani airstrikes successful Afghanistan Sunday. Pakistan said it was targeting nan outlawed Pakistani Taliban, aliases TTP. The group is abstracted but intimately allied pinch Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban. Afghanistan, however, said only civilians were killed successful Sunday’s airstrike.

After nan Afghan attack, Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif declared Friday: “Our patience has now tally out. Now it is unfastened warfare betwixt us.”

Continued fighting

Pakistani Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said Saturday that much than 331 Afghan forces had been killed and complete 500 others wounded during nan ongoing subject strikes successful Afghanistan. Pakistan destroyed 102 Afghan posts, captured 22 others and destroyed 163 tanks and armored vehicles astatine 37 locations, he said.

Kabul has dismissed nan casualty declare arsenic inaccurate.

On Saturday, nan Afghan Defense Ministry claimed that Afghan forces killed 110 Pakistani soldiers. Enayatullah Khawarazmi, a ministry spokesman, wrote connected X that Afghan forces besides captured 27 Pakistani posts.

There was nary contiguous consequence from Islamabad.

Pakistan’s service spokesperson Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said Friday that 12 Pakistani soldiers were killed successful nan fighting.

The Afghan government’s lawman spokesman, Hamdullah Fitrat, connected Saturday accused Pakistan of targeting civilian areas successful nan provinces of Paktika, Khost, Kunar, Nangarhar and Kandahar, arsenic good arsenic exile camps successful Torkham and Kandahar. Fitrat said 52 group had been killed, astir of them women and children, and 66 others wounded.

Meanwhile, nan United Nations wrote connected X that awesome cities successful Afghanistan were reportedly bombed by nan Pakistani subject connected Friday, marking a caller escalation and raising fears for civilians already struggling nether nan harsh norm of nan Taliban authorities.

On Friday, Afghan authorities spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid said 13 Afghan forces were killed and 22 wounded. He besides said 55 Pakistani soldiers were killed. Pakistan put its ain subject figures astatine 12 killed, 27 wounded and 1 worker missing successful action.

Pakistan’s state-run media reported nan country’s aerial unit carried retired strikes targeting cardinal subject installations successful various areas of eastbound Afghanistan.

According to Pakistani authorities, hundreds of residents surviving adjacent nan northwestern Torkham separator crossing had fled. In caller days, Pakistan has besides deported dozens of Afghan refugees to Torkham.

Ejaz Ul Haq, an Afghan exile stranded adjacent nan Torkham separator pinch his family, said he could not return to Afghanistan because of nan fighting. Many others were struggling to get nutrient during nan fasting period of Ramadan, he said.

Afghanistan’s Defense Ministry connected Saturday said its forces attacked Pakistani subject bases successful Miranshah and Spin Wam overnight, destroying subject installations and causing dense casualties successful consequence to nan ongoing airstrikes by Pakistan.

Afghanistan says Pakistan targeting civilian areas

In eastbound Afghanistan, nan Department of Information and Culture accused Pakistan of targeting civilian areas, destroying homes and sidesplitting astatine slightest 11 people. There was nary contiguous consequence from Pakistan, which has said it is targeting only subject installations.

Mullah Taj Mohammad Naqshbandi, a commissioner connected nan Afghan broadside of nan Torkham border, said successful a connection Saturday that nan “brave forces of nan Islamic Emirate destroyed nan Pakistani subject regime’s commissariat, subject units, and 3 important information towers.”

On Friday, nan Afghan authorities said 55 Pakistani soldiers were killed during its strikes and Afghan losses were acold little than Pakistan claimed.

Mujahid, nan Afghan authorities spokesman, said Friday that nan country’s attacks connected Pakistani subject targets were meant arsenic “a connection that our hands tin scope their throats and that we will respond to each evil enactment of Pakistan.” He added that “Pakistan has ne'er sought to resoluteness problems done dialogue.”

Pakistan has often accused Kabul of sheltering nan TTP, allegations nan group and Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities deny.

Pakistan’s service spokesperson Chaudhry said Friday nan Afghan authorities had to take betwixt “TTP aliases Pakistan.”

Tension precocious for months

Tensions person been precocious since October, erstwhile dozens of soldiers, civilians and suspected militants were killed successful separator clashes. A Qatari-mediated ceasefire ended nan aggravated fighting that month, but respective rounds of bid talks successful Turkey successful November grounded to nutrient a lasting agreement. The 2 sides person occasionally traded occurrence since then, though nan ceasefire had mostly held until past week, erstwhile Pakistan struck what it described arsenic TTP hideouts.

Since then, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, China and respective different countries are again attempting to defuse tensions by offering mediation.

Qatar’s curate of state, Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi, said Friday pinch nan overseas ministers of Afghanistan and Pakistan successful an effort to de-escalate tensions, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said successful a station connected X.

Ahmed and Afghan constitute for nan Associated Press and reported from Islamabad and Kabul, respectively. AP writers Riaz Khan and Rasool Dawar successful Peshawar, Pakistan, contributed to this report.