ISLAMABAD: Fierce overnight clashes between Pakistani forces and Taliban fighters along the Pakistan–Afghanistan border have left dozens dead on both sides, according to conflicting statements issued by the two countries.
Pakistan’s military media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), confirmed in a press release that 23 Pakistani soldiers were killed and 29 others were injured during heavy fighting with Afghan Taliban forces near the border.
According to ISPR, the clashes erupted during the night between October 11 and 12, when Afghan Taliban and Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) groups launched unprovoked attacks on Pakistani border positions.
The statement said the assault involved intense gunfire and ground operations, allegedly aimed at destabilizing border regions and fueling terrorism to further the “malicious agenda” of the attackers.
Pakistan claimed that its forces responded effectively using both ground and air operations, targeting Taliban camps and outposts across multiple locations along the frontier.
ISPR stated that “several Taliban positions on both sides of the border were destroyed,” adding that Pakistani forces temporarily took control of 21 enemy strongholds inside Afghan territory and neutralized several terrorist training camps reportedly used for planning cross-border attacks.
The military said the operations inflicted “heavy human and material losses” on the Taliban side.
According to Pakistani officials, the clashes began after Afghan forces attacked Pakistani border posts near five different crossing points, triggering fierce fighting between the two sides.
Meanwhile, in Kabul, the spokesperson for Afghanistan’s Taliban government, Zabihullah Mujahid, claimed that Taliban fighters launched retaliatory attacks following Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan soil.
He asserted that 58 Pakistani soldiers were killed and 30 were wounded in those operations, while nine Taliban fighters were killed and 18 were injured.
Mujahid also claimed that Taliban forces temporarily captured 20 Pakistani border posts, but later returned them after the fighting subsided.
The Taliban spokesman accused Pakistan of aggression and warned that any further attacks on Afghan territory would receive a strong response.
