The strikes are the latest flare-up of violence between the neighbours whose relationship has been fraught since 2021, when the Taliban government took power in Kabul, and follow a weeks-long war that erupted in February.Pakistan's information minister said the operations killed 25 militants and were aimed at a group that it blames for a deadly weekend attack in Karachi, although Afghan authorities have repeatedly denied their territory harbours militants.The Taliban government said the airstrikes hit three eastern provinces, killing 36 civilians and wounding 163."When local residents gathered to conduct rescue operations, the area was bombed for a second time" in Paktia province, deputy government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat said. Pakistan's information minister said the offensive also included ground operations in border areas and targeted Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a splinter group of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)."Three targets in Paktia, Paktika and Kunar were destroyed during precision strikes," information minister Attaullah Tarar said in a statement. He said four militants were also killed in ground operations.Simmering conflict
Afghan residents gather at the site of a Pakistani airstrike at a village in Paktia province © - / AFP
