Pakistan–Afghanistan tensions escalate as Pakistan says it is “Writing Off” the Taliban after fresh airstrike row
Total Views |
Pakistan and the Taliban government in Afghanistan are once again locked in a tense situation. Things became more heated after Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Tuesday said that the country has now “written off” the Taliban and no longer expects anything positive from them.
It came after Zabiullah Mujahid, the spokesman for the Taliban regime, claimed that Pakistan had carried out overnight airstrikes in Afghanistan. In a post on social media platform X, he said that Pakistan had “bombed” Khost province and carried out air strikes in Kunar and Paktika provinces, as a result of which 9 children (5 boys and 4 girls) and one woman were martyred,
a claim Pakistan denied.
When asked in an interview on Geo News about the Taliban’s claims and Pakistan’s response, Khawaja Asif said:
“Both things are non-existent at this time. We do react and retaliate, but targeting civilians is not at all our manner. We are not a ragtag group like the Taliban, who neither have a code of conduct nor religion nor traditions.”
“But you know, hope should always be present unless all limits are crossed. But today, we are completely writing them off and we have no good hope from them, he added”.
Relations between Islamabad and Kabul have been tense ever since the Taliban returned to power in 2021. Pakistan accuses the Taliban of sheltering terrorists, especially the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which has carried out deadly attacks inside Pakistan for years.
Kabul rejects the allegations and counters that Pakistan itself hosts groups hostile to Afghanistan and frequently violates Afghan sovereignty.
This fresh wave of hostility comes just weeks after several rounds of talks between the two sides failed to ease tensions, indicating that the border dispute and mutual distrust are only deepening.