KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – At least one civilian was killed and five others were injured during clashes between Taliban forces and Pakistani border guards in Angoor Adda, along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border between Paktika and South Waziristan.
The fighting began at around 5 p.m. on Tuesday, October 27, along the Durand Line near Angoor Adda, in Barmal district of southeastern Paktika province, according to a security source in Barmal who spoke to KabulNow. The confrontation continued into the evening, with reports of gunfire and shelling affecting civilian areas on both sides of the border.
Pakistani authorities said one civilian was killed and five others, all members of the same family, were injured when a mortar shell struck a residential property in Angoor Adda, in Lower South Waziristan district of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The office of the district’s deputy commissioner also reported damage to several shops in the border bazaar.
The precise circumstances that triggered the exchange of fire remain unclear. Pakistani officials blamed Afghan Taliban forces for firing into residential areas and said Pakistani forces responded to the attack. Afghan security sources in Paktika confirmed to KabulNow that a border clash had occurred and said civilian homes on the Afghan side were also hit by gunfire from Pakistani forces.
The extent of the damage and any possible casualties in Afghanistan had not been independently established.
A video obtained by KabulNow showed a fire in shops in the Angoor Adda border market following the reported exchange of fire. The incident raised concerns about the safety of civilians living and working near the frontier, where military confrontations can quickly affect homes, businesses and cross-border movement.
Faisal Karim Kundi, governor of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, condemned the incident on Wednesday, October 28, describing the reported firing into Pakistani territory as a violation of the country’s sovereignty.
In a statement posted on X, Kundi warned the Afghan Taliban authorities against what he characterised as attacks on Pakistan and said Islamabad would not tolerate threats to its population or territorial integrity. He also praised the Pakistani security forces for what he described as their swift and decisive response.
Kundi said Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had suffered thousands of deaths in the fight against militancy and that the provincial government would not allow anyone to threaten the security of its residents. His remarks reflected Islamabad’s increasingly confrontational position towards the Taliban authorities over cross-border security.
Pakistan’s deputy commissioner for Lower South Waziristan also said Pakistani forces had responded to the firing. Pakistani media subsequently reported that the military had targeted Afghan Taliban border positions in retaliation. However, claims about the destruction of specific posts and the extent of military losses on either side could not be independently verified.
The Taliban authorities had not issued an official statement on the latest incident at the time of reporting.
The clashes come amid a prolonged deterioration in relations between Kabul and Islamabad, driven largely by disagreements over militant activity, border security and the status of the Durand Line. Pakistan has repeatedly accused the Taliban government of allowing the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) to operate from Afghan territory and plan attacks against Pakistani security forces and civilians. Islamabad has demanded that Kabul take verifiable action against the group.
The Taliban authorities have rejected Pakistan’s accusations that Afghanistan is being used to organise attacks against its neighbour. They have also characterised Pakistan’s security problems as an internal matter and denied that foreign militant groups are operating in Afghanistan in the manner alleged by Islamabad.
The latest confrontation is part of a wider pattern of recurring violence along the Afghanistan-Pakistan frontier. Border clashes have repeatedly disrupted civilian life and heightened tensions between the two sides, while military operations and retaliatory attacks have raised fears of further escalation.
Angoor Adda lies in a sensitive border region connecting Paktika province in southeastern Afghanistan with South Waziristan in Pakistan. Its border market and surrounding communities depend on local trade and movement across the frontier, making them particularly vulnerable when fighting breaks out.
With both sides reporting fire across the border and civilian casualties confirmed by Pakistani authorities, the incident underscores the risks posed by unresolved security disputes between the Taliban government and Pakistan.
