KABUL, AFGHNANISTAN – Sources in eastern Afghanistan say fighting has broken out between Taliban forces and Pakistani border troops in the Dand Patan district of Paktia province.
According to local sources, the clashes began on Wednesday afternoon (25 February) in the Maqbal area of Dand Patan, a district located along the Afghanistan–Pakistan border. Pakistani media outlet Khorasan Diary also reported heavy gunfire between Taliban fighters and Pakistani military personnel in the area.
The Maqbal area lies along the border between Dand Patan district in Afghanistan’s Paktia province and Kurram district in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Sources say the fighting has since stopped. The cause of the confrontation and any possible casualties remain unclear.
The clashes come a day after similar fighting was reported between Taliban forces and Pakistani border guards in the Nazyan, Achin and Dur Baba districts of Nangarhar province.
The recent tensions follow Pakistani airstrikes earlier this week targeting areas in Paktika and Nangarhar provinces. According to local reports, at least 17 people — including 11 children — were killed in Nangarhar, while no casualties were reported in Paktika.
Taliban officials have said they will respond to the cross-border incidents “at an appropriate time.”
Militant violence has surged in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces since the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan in 2021, with the TTP and other groups frequently targeting security forces and installations.
Islamabad accuses the Afghan Taliban of allowing TTP militants to operate from Afghan territory to launch cross-border attacks, allegations denied by the Taliban, who urge Pakistan to address its security issues domestically.
The Taliban have consistently denied the presence of terrorist groups in Afghanistan. In recent talks with UN Deputy Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo, Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi said no militant groups are active in the country and that Afghan territory would not be used as a base for attacks against other nations.
