KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Hamdullah Fitrat, the deputy spokesperson of the Taliban, says that one civilian was killed and a woman was injured in a Pakistani missile strike on Nari district of Kunar province.
He wrote in a post on X that the attack took place around 9:30 a.m. today (Sunday, March 22) in the “Shanpat” area of Nari district, Kunar province.
The deputy spokesperson also stated that the Taliban targeted a civilian vehicle in the “Shakin” district of Paktika province, but the attack did not result in any casualties.
Pakistani officials have not yet confirmed or denied these attacks.
This comes as Pakistan and the Taliban had announced a temporary ceasefire on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, at the request of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey.
Attaullah Tarar, Pakistan’s Minister of Information and Broadcasting, had said that the country’s attacks against the Taliban in Afghanistan would be halted until midnight on March 23.
Similarly, three days ago, local Taliban authorities in eastern Kunar province accused Pakistan of violating a temporary Eid ceasefire, saying that attacks had continued since Wednesday night. Local sources reported that a female health worker and her son were killed when their vehicle was targeted on a road in Nari district, while her husband, another son, and their driver were injured. The woman had been returning home to Kunar from Nuristan during the holiday.
Pakistani officials and Taliban authorities had not publicly commented on the specific incident, though the Taliban had confirmed continued strikes in Kunar and warned that they would respond to any further ceasefire violations.
Following the announcement of the temporary ceasefire with Pakistan, the Taliban have repeatedly accused the country of violating the ceasefire and carrying out attacks in border provinces of Afghanistan.
Pakistan and the Taliban, once allies, have clashed repeatedly along the border in recent months, including airstrikes and cross-border fire, after Islamabad accused the Afghan Taliban of sheltering members of the Pakistani Taliban, responsible for deadly attacks inside Pakistan.
The latest wave of fighting, which began in late February, lasted nearly three weeks and caused hundreds of casualties, including civilians. UN figures indicate at least 289 civilians were killed or injured in Pakistani airstrikes across several provinces during that period.
On Monday, a Pakistani airstrike hit a drug rehabilitation center in Kabul, killing at least 143 people according to the UN. The Taliban says 400 were killed and 250 were injured. UN agencies and human rights groups have called for an independent and impartial investigation.
