Pakistan and Afghanistan yet again clashed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Tuesday. The Pakistani military struck Taliban posts and tanks with Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 drones and anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs).
Pakistan’s response came after the Taliban and the Tehreek-e-Taliban militants reportedly opened fire on its army posts.
The Pakistani state broadcaster, PTV, said that a top commander of the TTP terrorist group was killed in the fresh clashes.
Reports suggest that the renewed confrontation forced people from the bordering Chaman area to evacuate their homes. This is the second time this week that the two sides have traded fire along their long border.
The fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan escalated after Pakistan’s Air Force struck Kabul on October 9. The attack was carried out to assassinate the TTP chief, Noor Wali Mehsud.
There are still conflicting reports about the fate of the TTP chief.
In response to the strikes in Kabul, the Taliban had launched an attack on the Pakistani military on the Durand Line. Pakistan said 23 of its army personnel were killed over the weekend clashes, and over 200 TTP militants and Taliban fighters died in the retaliatory attack.
Even though Pakistan and Afghanistan have announced a truce, tensions have been mounting. Reports suggest that the Taliban is mobilising its heavy weaponry, including missiles and tanks, on the Durand Line border.
Last week, the Taliban government accused Pakistan of carrying out airstrikes in Kabul was in violation of its sovereignty. Pakistan has previously launched strikes inside Afghanistan, claiming targets were hideouts of TTP, which is separate from but allied to the Afghan Taliban.
Pakistan has been accusing Kabul of harboring the group and is violating the Qatar agreement, under which Taliban has agreed not to allow its territory to be used by terrorist groups against any of its neighbors. Kabul has denied the allegation, saying it does not allow its territory to be used against other countries.
Pertinently, the TTP has carried out numerous deadly attacks inside Pakistan in which numerous Pakistani military and civilians were killed.
