Afghanistan says Pakistan airstrikes kill 3: Why tensions rise again | Today’s news
At least three people were killed and four others wounded in airstrikes by Pakistan in Afghanistan on Monday, Afghan officials said, in an escalation that could reignite tensions between the two neighboring countries after nearly three months of relative calm.
Afghan authorities said the attacks targeted civilian areas.
Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said Afghanistan would “respond appropriately to this aggression,” according to Reuters.
The latest strikes come at a time of rising tensions between Islamabad and Kabul over attacks by militants originating from Afghanistan.
The strikes came just days after a deadly militant attack on a police facility in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province last week.
On Friday, gunmen attacked the police headquarters and a mosque inside the Old Police Lines complex in Kohat. During Friday prayers, terrorists drove an explosives-laden vehicle into the mosque’s entrance, causing a powerful explosion that collapsed parts of the building, authorities said.
A faction linked to the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for the attack.
Authorities said at least 24 people, including 15 police officials, were killed in the attack, while several others were injured.
Pakistan said the Kohat attack had links to Afghanistan, adding to its longstanding allegations that militant groups operating against the Pakistani state may be using Afghan territory.
Read also | TTP Terrorist Group Attacks Pak From Afghan Border — Who Are They? what do they want
Trade guilt of Pakistan and Afghanistan
Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have soured amid accusations by Islamabad that the Taliban government harbors militants responsible for cross-border attacks.
Pakistan has repeatedly accused Kabul of providing space to the TTP and other militant groups.
However, Afghanistan denies the allegations and says militancy inside Pakistan is Islamabad’s internal problem.
Pakistan has allegedly carried out airstrikes inside Afghanistan, cross-border clashes and retaliatory actions.
Tensions further escalated earlier this year, with airstrikes, drone strikes and artillery exchanges causing hundreds of civilian casualties in Afghanistan in the first half of the year.
The latest Pakistani strikes also came a day after a separate firefight in Hangu district near the Afghan border.
According to a statement by the Pakistani military, six Pakistani soldiers, including two officers, and eight militants were killed in the encounter.
The Kohat attack also highlighted Pakistan’s wider struggle with numerous militant groups operating in its northwestern region.
The TTP is an umbrella militant organization founded in 2007 that has waged a long-running insurgency against the Pakistani state. Its emergence was closely linked to the militancy that spread across Pakistan’s tribal areas after the US-led war in Afghanistan.
Why might tensions rise again?
The latest Pakistani airstrikes come against the backdrop of a deteriorating security situation on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.
With Afghanistan now threatening to respond to the latest strikes, the episode could further strain relations between the two neighbors and undermine the relative calm we have seen in the past few months.
