KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Pakistan’s Geo News has reported that several Afghan Taliban members were killed in clashes with Pakistani forces along the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Citing Pakistani security sources, Geo News said the clashes broke out on Saturday, October 17, in the Taida and Ghuzgarhi areas of Upper Kurram district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, following what the sources described as unprovoked firing by Afghan Taliban forces.
The Pakistani security sources claimed that Pakistani forces targeted and destroyed two Afghan Taliban posts, named Tap Sar and Shapola, during the fighting. They also said Taliban forces abandoned another post.
According to Geo News, Pakistani security sources alleged that the Afghan Taliban opened fire to facilitate the movement of foreign militants across the border. These allegations have not been independently verified.
Afghan Taliban officials have not issued an official statement on the reported clashes. However, Al Jazeera, citing sources within the Taliban administration, reported that the fighting had resulted in casualties, without providing further details.
Earlier, KabulNow reported that clashes had erupted between Taliban forces and Pakistani border guards in the border areas of Dand Patan and Zazi Aryob districts in Afghanistan’s southeastern Paktia province on Saturday. The fighting began at around 4 p.m. local time on October 17 and was still ongoing when local sources spoke to KabulNow.
The sources said both sides were using light and heavy weapons. A source in Dand Patan told KabulNow that some rockets fired from the Pakistani side had struck residential areas, leaving local families facing difficult conditions. The extent of the damage and whether there were any casualties had not been established at the time of reporting.
The latest reports come amid persistent tensions along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, where disputes over cross-border security and militant activity have repeatedly triggered armed confrontations. Pakistan has accused the Taliban authorities in Afghanistan of allowing militant groups, particularly Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), to operate from Afghan territory. The Taliban authorities have rejected accusations that Afghanistan is being used to threaten other countries.
Repeated clashes and cross-border attacks have strained relations between the two neighbours, disrupted trade and movement, and exposed civilians living near the frontier to violence and displacement. The latest incidents raise further concerns about civilian safety and the risk of escalation along the disputed and heavily contested border areas.
The exact number of casualties and the extent of damage from the latest clashes remain unclear, and the claims made by Pakistani security sources have not been independently verified.
