‘Open War’ Warning as Pakistan–Afghanistan Violence Spirals

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Pakistan and Afghanistan have sharply escalated hostilities in a significant blow to regional stability, with Pakistan launching airstrikes on Kabul and other Afghan cities following a series of deadly cross-border clashes. Islamabad said the strikes were a retaliatory response after Afghan forces opened fire on Pakistani troops along the border.

In the pre-dawn hours, Pakistani warplanes struck military targets in Kabul, Kandahar and Paktia provinces, sending shockwaves through the Afghan capital and triggering anti-aircraft fire, according to local reports. Officials in Islamabad described the operations as part of a broader campaign against Taliban positions they say are harbouring militant groups responsible for repeated attacks on Pakistani soil.

The Afghan Taliban government has condemned the strikes as violations of international law and a breach of its sovereignty, with officials claiming that their forces launched a large-scale offensive against Pakistani posts in retaliation for earlier Pakistani air raids that reportedly killed civilians. Kabul’s Defence Ministry stated that dozens of Pakistani soldiers were killed and multiple positions captured claims strongly disputed by Pakistani authorities.

Islamabad’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif took to social media to declare that Pakistan’s “patience has reached its limit”, calling the situation an “open war” between the two neighbours language that underscores how rapidly the confrontation has deteriorated after intermittent clashes.

The violence has had grave consequences for civilians on both sides of the frontier, with reports of refugee camps coming under fire, displacement of local populations, and a worrying breakdown of diplomatic channels. International actors including the United Nations have urged restraint and warned that continued hostilities threaten a fragile ceasefire that had been intermittently in place since late 2025.

Photo Credit: AFP