‘Will Respond If Pak Escalates’: Taliban Issues Warning Amid Fresh Clashes Along Pakistan-Afghanistan Border In Kandahar

Kabul: Fresh clashes have erupted along the volatile Afghanistan-Pakistan border, with heavy exchange of fire reported near Kandahar’s Shorabak district. Sources confirmed that forces of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and the Pakistan Army clashed again on Tuesday, though the exact cause of the renewed hostilities remains unclear. Reports indicate intense firing from both sides, marking another escalation in a series of border confrontations that have strained relations between the two neighbours.

In an exclusive conversation with Republic, Afghanistan Ministry of Home Affairs spokesperson Abdul Matin Qaneh said, “We are open to a resolution… But if Pakistan escalates, we will respond… Pakistan is crossing the line.”

In a major claim, the Taliban government accused Pakistani border forces of killing seven Afghan civilians in Helmand’s Bahramcha district and taking away their bodies to exchange them with those of two Pakistani soldiers. According to Taliban officials, Pakistani forces “vented their anger” on civilians after suffering casualties in earlier skirmishes. Helmand provincial officials, however, denied any such incident, saying there was “nothing like this” on their side of the border.

The violence comes amid rising tensions within Pakistan, where the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has stepped up its push for power.

On Monday, senior TTP leaders, including Ghazi Abdullah and Abu Zar Afridi, met tribal elders from Khyber District’s five tehsils in the Tirah Valley’s Bagh area, just days after a deadly attack on Pakistan’s military. The meeting sought withdrawal of troops after recent clashes and airstrikes, but TTP leaders reportedly demanded full Sharia implementation in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, modelled on the “Afghanistan model”, and rejected any negotiations with the Pakistan government or army.

The Pakistan Taliban’s growing assertiveness, coupled with fresh border clashes, underscores Islamabad’s deepening security crisis. Relations between Kabul and Islamabad have sharply deteriorated since the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in 2021, with both sides accusing each other of cross-border aggression and harbouring militant groups. As gunfire continues to echo across Kandahar and Helmand, peace along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border appears increasingly distant.

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