ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s defence minister early Friday, February 27, said that his country had run out of “patience” and now considers itself in an “open war” with neighbouring Afghanistan after both sides launched strikes following what Islamabad described as an Afghan cross-border attack.
In a post on X, Defence Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif said Pakistan had hoped for peace in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of NATO forces and expected the Taliban to focus on the welfare of the Afghan people and regional stability, PTI reported.
“Our patience has now run out. Now it is open war between us,” he said. There has been no reaction from Afghan government officials to Asif’s comments.
His remarks came hours after Pakistan carried out airstrikes in Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, as well as in Kandahar in the south and Paktia province in the southeast, according to Pakistani officials and Afghanistan government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid. Pakistan says the strikes were in retaliation for Afghan cross-border attacks.
The escalation comes months after Qatar and Turkiye mediated a ceasefire between the two sides.
Both governments have issued sharply differing casualty claims and said they inflicted heavy losses on the other. The claims could not be independently verified.
Afghanistan’s Defence Ministry said overnight that 55 Pakistani soldiers had been killed, including some whose bodies were taken into Afghanistan, and that “several others were captured alive.” It said eight Afghan soldiers were killed and 11 wounded. The ministry said it destroyed 19 Pakistani army posts and two bases and that the fighting ended around midnight, about four hours after it began Thursday.
Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said two Pakistani soldiers were killed and three wounded.
Mosharraf Ali Zaidi, a spokesperson for Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, denied that any Pakistani soldiers had been captured.
In a post on X, he said at least 133 Afghan fighters were killed and more than 200 wounded. He also said 27 Afghan posts were destroyed and nine fighters captured. He did not specify where the casualties occurred but said additional losses were estimated in strikes on military targets in Kabul, Paktia and Kandahar.
In Islamabad, two senior security officials said Afghan forces at some border posts had raised white flags, a gesture typically interpreted as a request to halt firing. The officials said Pakistani forces were continuing what they described as a strong retaliatory response to “unprovoked aggression” by the Afghan Taliban and had destroyed several key Taliban posts along the border.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
Asif also accused the Taliban government of denying Afghans basic human rights, including rights for women that he said are guaranteed under Islam, without providing details or evidence.
He said Pakistan had tried to maintain stability both directly and through friendly countries.
“Today, when attempts were made to target Pakistan with aggression, by the grace of God, our armed forces are giving a decisive response,” he said.
Authorities in Pakistan said dozens of Afghan refugees who were waiting to return home from the northwestern Torkham border have been taken back to safer places following the eruption of clashes.
Pakistan launched a sweeping crackdown in October 2023 to expel migrants without documents, urging those in the country to leave of their own accord to avoid arrest and forcible deportation and forcibly expelling others. Iran also began a crackdown on migrants at around the same time.
Since then, millions have streamed across the border into Afghanistan, including people who were born in Pakistan decades ago and had built lives and created businesses there.
Last year alone, 2.9 million people returned to Afghanistan, the U.N. refugee agency has said, with nearly 80,000 having returned so far this year.
China, Russia call for ceasefire amid rising tension
China on Friday called on Pakistan and Afghanistan to work out a ceasefire while expressing concern over the escalation of the conflict between the two countries.
China is closely following the developments of the situation in the conflict between Pakistan and Afghanistan, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a media briefing here, responding to questions on the current conflict between the two countries.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are close neighbours, and both are neighbouring countries of China. As a neighbour and friend, China is deeply concerned about the escalation of the conflict and deeply saddened by the casualties caused by the conflict, Mao said.
She said China supports combating all forms of terrorism and calls on both sides to exercise calm and restraint, properly resolve their differences and disputes through dialogue and consultation, and realise a ceasefire as soon as possible to avoid more suffering.
The de-escalation serves the fundamental interests of the two countries and peoples, and will help uphold peace and stability in the region, she said.
She also said China has been mediating between the two countries through its own channels and stands ready to continue to play a constructive role in de escalating the situation and improving relations between the two countries, Mao said.
In response to a question on whether China is considering evacuating Chinese nationals and companies from Pakistan and Afghanistan or suspending relevant flights due to the fierce cross-border clashes between the two countries, Mao said, “We are closely following the development of the situation and will provide necessary assistance to Chinese nationals in need.”
China maintains close ties with Pakistan and Afghanistan through a tripartite mechanism, conducting periodic meetings to iron out differences over Islamabad’s repeated allegations against Kabul of hosting Pakistan’s militant groups, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and Baloch Liberation Army.
The Afghan Taliban firmly reject the allegations of harbouring Pakistan militants and blame the Pakistani army’s aggressive actions, including airstrikes on Kabul, for the escalation of the conflict.
Amid an escalation of armed clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan, Russia on Friday urged both countries to end the conflict and resolve their differences through diplomatic means.
Pakistan launched a retaliatory operation late Thursday night in response to the alleged border attacks by the Afghan Taliban. Islamabad claimed that 133 Taliban fighters were killed in Operation Ghazab lil Haq.
The 2,611-km-long border between Pakistan and Afghanistan is known as the Durand Line, which Kabul has not formally recognised.
The Russian Foreign Ministry expressed concern over the “sharp escalation” of armed clashes between Afghanistan and Pakistan, “involving regular army units, air force, and heavy weapons”.
“There are casualties on both sides, including civilians. We call on our friendly countries, Afghanistan and Pakistan, to abandon this dangerous confrontation and return to the negotiating table to resolve all differences through political and diplomatic means,” foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said in a statement.
Kremlin’s Special Envoy for Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, also urged Islamabad and Kabul to halt the hostilities.
“We are in favour of a swift end to mutual attacks and a diplomatic resolution of differences,” Kabulov was quoted as saying by state-run news agency RIA Novosti.
