ISLAMABAD: Pakistani forces launched high-precision retaliatory airstrikes overnight into eastern Afghanistan, targeting militant safe havens belonging to the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Hafiz Gul Bahadur faction, intelligence and military sources confirmed.
The cross-border offensive struck targets in the Nurgal district of Kunar province and the Barmal district of Paktika province—both bordering Pakistan’s volatile Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Authorities reported that at least 28 high-value terrorists were eliminated and several others critically injured in the operation.
According to military officials, the strategic strikes were executed in direct response to a deadly terror attack at the Old Police Lines compound in Kohat earlier this week. In that assault, a suicide bomber detonated an explosive-laden vehicle at the outer wall of the police lines mosque during Friday prayers before armed gunmen stormed the compound, leaving at least 21 people dead—including 16 police officers—and over 80 injured.
The Hafiz Gul Bahadur faction, an Afghan-based affiliate operating under the umbrella of Fitna al-Khawarij (TTP), publicly claimed responsibility for the Kohat attack.
Hamdullah Fitrat, deputy spokesperson for the Taliban administration in Kabul, confirmed the Pakistani strikes in a statement on X, though he attempted to downplay the extent of militant casualties. Despite Kabul’s continued denials, UN monitoring bodies and independent security analysts have repeatedly documented the presence of entrenched TTP infrastructure inside Afghanistan.
Pakistan has experienced a dramatic surge in cross-border terrorism since the Taliban seized power in Kabul in 2021. Banned outfits, including the TTP and Baloch terror groups, routinely use sanctuaries across the border to organize, resource, and execute lethal attacks inside Pakistani territory.
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Islamabad reaffirmed its stance on Monday, asserting that targeted military operations against foreign-backed hideouts will continue unabated until Kabul takes concrete, verifiable action to neutralize terrorists operating from Afghan soil.
