At least three people have died in Pakistani air attacks on a house in Afghanistan's Kunar province, according to Taliban officials. The strike occurred in the Nurgal district around 4am local time Monday (23:30 GMT Sunday), killing three members of one family and injuring four others. Taliban deputy spokesperson Hamdullah Fitrat confirmed the incident in a post on X, stating that the attack targeted a residential building. A second strike hit Barmal district in Paktika province, damaging a shop and an unoccupied house, with no casualties reported.
Farid Dehqan, Kunar provincial spokesperson, verified the details, noting the early morning timing and location. The attacks come days after a Pakistan Taliban faction claimed responsibility for a bombing at a police mosque in Kohat, northwestern Pakistan, which killed at least 21 people, mostly officers. Pakistan's Ministry of Information had warned Saturday that it might conduct operations inside Afghanistan against militants it alleges are based there. Islamabad accuses Kabul of sheltering armed groups behind cross-border attacks, a claim the Taliban government denies, calling the violence Pakistan's internal matter.
There has been no immediate response from Pakistani authorities on the alleged air raids. The incidents threaten to escalate tensions between the two nations after nearly three months of relative calm, following their worst clashes in years in February.
The Taliban government faces a test of its ability to protect civilians while denying responsibility for cross-border attacks. Pakistan's warning of strikes inside Afghanistan has now materialised in reported residential bombings, raising the stakes for regional stability. If verified, the attacks suggest a shift from border skirmishes to targeted aerial operations, with civilian casualties potentially hardening public positions on both sides.
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