Afghanistan thwarted attempted airstrikes on Bagram Air Base, the former U.S. military base north of Kabul, authorities said Sunday (March 1, 2026), while cross-border fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan stretched into a fourth day.
The fighting has been the most severe between the neighbors for years, with Pakistan declaring that it’s in “open war” with Afghanistan. The conflict has alarmed the international community, particularly as the area is one where other militant organisations, including al-Qaida and the Islamic State group, still have a presence and have been trying to resurface.
Afghanistan-Pakistan war: Follow LIVE updates on March 1, 2026
Pakistan accuses Afghanistan’s Taliban government of harbouring militant groups that stage attacks against it and also of allying with its archrival India.
Border clashes in October killed dozens of soldiers, civilians and suspected militants until a Qatari-mediated ceasefire ended the intense fighting. But several rounds of peace talks in Turkiye in November failed to produce a lasting agreement, and the two sides have occasionally traded fire since then.
