Taliban Strikes Back: 15 Pakistani Soldiers Killed in Border Clashes
Afghan forces strike back after Pakistan’s Kabul airstrikes.
A deadly Taliban retaliation in Afghanistan’s Helmand province claimed the lives of 15 Pakistani soldiers on October 11, 2025, following Pakistan’s airstrikes on Afghan soil, including Kabul. Mawlawi Mohammad Qasim Riaz, Helmand’s provincial spokesperson, announced that Afghan forces overran three Pakistani military outposts near the Durand Line in Bahrampur district, seizing weapons and ammunition in a fierce midnight assault.
The operation was a direct response to Pakistan’s October 9 airstrikes targeting Kabul and Paktika, which the Taliban condemned as a violation of sovereignty. Explosions rocked Kabul’s eastern districts, with strikes also reported in Khost and Jalalabad, aimed at Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) hideouts. The Taliban launched counterattacks across seven border provinces—Helmand, Kandahar, Zabul, Paktika, Paktia, Khost, Nangarhar, and Kunar—engaging Pakistani posts in heavy clashes. Afghan defense spokesman Enayatullah Khowarazmi declared the operations concluded by midnight but warned of firm responses to future incursions.
Pakistan, denying responsibility for the airstrikes, accused Kabul of harboring TTP militants, ideological allies of the Afghan Taliban, blamed for hundreds of deaths in Pakistan since 2021. Pakistani forces reported returning heavy fire, downing three Afghan quadcopters suspected of carrying explosives, and claimed no losses on their side. Tensions escalated further as the TTP claimed a separate attack in northwest Pakistan, killing 20 security personnel and three civilians.
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The Afghan Taliban’s refusal to curb TTP activities, coupled with their rejection of the colonial-era Durand Line, has fueled Islamabad’s frustration. Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif recently vowed a united response against militant sanctuaries, whether on Pakistani or Afghan soil. As both sides trade artillery and accusations, regional powers like Saudi Arabia and Qatar call for calm to avert a broader conflict. With nuclear capabilities in play and India’s recent diplomatic outreach to the Taliban adding complexity, the volatile border region risks spiraling into an all-out war, threatening fragile South Asian stability.
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