KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Taliban forces and Pakistani border guards exchanged fire in the Dur Baba border area of Nangarhar province, local sources confirmed on Wednesday.
The clashes began Tuesday afternoon and continued until early Wednesday morning (July 16), with both sides reportedly using light and heavy weapons.
While there are no confirmed reports of casualties on the Afghanistan side, Pakistani media outlets reported that at least two children were killed in the Zakha Khel area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, as a result of the fighting.
Neither Taliban nor Pakistani officials have commented on the incident.
This latest skirmish adds to a series of deadly border confrontations since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021. In a similar incident last year, heavy clashes forced the closure of the Torkham crossing for nearly a month, disrupting both trade and civilian movement.
In September 2023, fighting between Taliban forces and Pakistani troops along the Khost-Kurram border left at least 16 Taliban fighters dead and 27 others wounded, according to local reports.
Tensions frequently flare along the disputed Durand Line, as Taliban efforts to set up new border posts often provoke retaliatory fire from Pakistani forces. Islamabad accuses the Taliban of harboring Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants who allegedly operate from Afghanistan territory to launch attacks across the border.
The Taliban deny these claims, insisting they do not permit any group to use Afghanistan for hostile acts.
However, the presence of TTP members in Afghanistan remains a major friction point. Former Pakistani envoy Asif Durrani has estimated that around 6,000 TTP fighters and their families are currently based in Afghanistan.
