The Taliban government has accused Pakistan of bombing the home of a civilian in Khost province, killing nine children and a woman.
Tensions have once again flared up between Afghanistan and Pakistan following the killing of 10 Afghans, including nine children, after Pakistan allegedly launched overnight strikes in three Afghan provinces on Tuesday night.
As the relations between the two South Asian neighbours face another blow, Afghan Taliban spokesperson said that Afghanistan has the “legitimate right” to defend itself. “We will deliver necessary response at appropriate time,” Zabihullah Mujahid, the chief spokesperson for the Afghan government, was quoted as saying by Reuters.
“The airstrikes carried out by Pakistani forces last night on the provinces of Paktika, Khost, and Kunar constitute a blatant violation of Afghanistan’s airspace sanctity and a clear contravention of all rules and the international standards approved by the United Nations and the international community,” Mujahid wrote on X, as he termed Pakistan’s latest airstrikes as “crime”.
Earlier, Mujahid took to X and alleged that Pakistan had “bombed” the home of a civilian in Khost province, killing nine children and a woman. He said additional strikes were carried out in the provinces of Kunar and Paktika, injuring four others.
Pakistan has not responded to the allegations of orchestrating the attack which comes more than a month after cross-border clashes erupted when the Afghan government claimed Pakistani drone strikes hit Kabul.
The alleged strikes come at a time when the ceasefire brokered by Qatar and Turkey between the two sides in October was still holding Tuesday.
On Monday, two suicide bombers and a gunman attacked the headquarters of the Federal Constabulary in Pakistan’s northwestern city of Peshawar. Three officers were killed, and 11 others were wounded in the attack.
While no group claimed responsibility for the attack, Pakistani Taliban was suspected to be behind the attack. Pakistan Taliban, also called Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan(TTP) is a separate group, but allied with the Afghan Taliban, and many of its leaders are reportedly hiding in Afghanistan.
