Pakistan Declares ‘Open War’ as Border Clashes With Afghan Taliban Escalate

The relationship between Pakistan and Afghanistan has gone out of proportion as Islamabad declared an 'open war' against the Afghan Taliban government after days of aggravated cross border hostilities.

The increase is following the airstrikes by Pakistan in Kabul, Kandahar and Paktia, hours after the Afghan troops had initiated cross-border attacks, to which Kabul said were in response to previous Pakistani attacks along the border.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif of Pakistan declared the operation 'Ghazab Lil Haq' and said that patience of Islamabad was over. The military action is one of the most severe outbursts between the two neighbours in the recent years.

Competing Proclamations of Egregious Losses

It has been documented that both factions have caused huge losses, although their estimates vary sharply.

Pakistan has also claimed that it killed over 130 Afghan fighters and wounded over 200 others in its operations and also stated that dozens of Afghan military posts have been destroyed. However, the Afghan government confirms that 55 Pakistani soldiers were killed during their attack and some are reportedly taken captive. Islamabad has denied such claims, claiming that there were only two Pakistani soldiers who were killed and three injured.

The contrasting discrepancy in the count of victims highlights the fog of war that shrouds the conflict as the claims of both sides remains unverfied.

Strikes in the Major Cities in Afghanistan.

Kabul witnessed explosions, and Taliban officials confirmed that Pakistani airstrikes were also directed towards Kandahar and Paktia provinces. Islamabad defined the targets as the Afghan military sites, such as the headquarters of the brigades and corps, ammunition, and logistical bases.

Afghan officials denounced the attacks as breach of their sovereignty and claimed 8 Afghan soldiers were killed during their land offensive into Pakistan territory.

In the meantime, Pakistan described the Afghan attack as "unprovoked firing" and said its response was necessary to protect the territorial integrity.

Citizens Caught in the Crossfire

When tensions rose civilians across the border were made to seek refuge.

In Nangarhar province, Afghanistan, a mortar shell is said to have hit a refugee camp in Torkham crossing and wounded some of the displaced individuals, including women and children. Missiles fired at the camp wounded at least 13 civilians, according to Afghan officials.

In Pakistan, people in the border villages were evacuated after being shell shocked. There were also Afghan refugees who were awaiting to cross into Afghanistan as they were moved by the authorities.

The Torkham crossing which is a vital trade and transit route has been closed mostly since conflicts began in October except by regulated crossing of returnees.

Shaky Peace Accords Fail

The most recent violence has raised serious doubts on a precarious ceasefire negotiated by Qatar at the beginning of this year. Even though the truce had dampened large-scale fighting, sporadic exchange of fire was still present in recent months.

The new increase is after Pakistani airstrikes on last Sunday which was a response according to Islamabad, to militants who were working on the Afghan soil. Kabul rejected the accusation and accused Pakistan of killing civilians and violating the Afghan airspace.

The historical conflict is directly connected with the claims of Pakistan that the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has its bases within the borders of Afghanistan - an allegation that the TTP and the Taliban government deny.

Alarm in the International Community

To restrain the two nations, the United Nations has urged them to do the same. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged Islamabad and Kabul to protect civilians in line with the international law and end their differences through diplomatic means.

Nonetheless, Operation Ghazab Lil Haq is in progress, and both parties are hardening their rhetoric, which does not spell out any de-escalation in the short term.

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