Pakistan’s defence minister on Friday declared “open war” on the Afghan Taliban government, following renewed clashes along the shared border. “Our patience has reached its limit. Now it is open war between us and you,” Khawaja Asif posted on X.
The escalation came after Afghan forces attacked Pakistani troops along the frontier, prompting Islamabad to launch air strikes on key Afghan cities including Kabul and Kandahar. “After airstrikes in Kabul, Kandahar and other provinces, once again wide-ranging retaliatory operations were launched against the positions of Pakistani soldiers, in the directions of Kandahar and Helmand as well,” Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on X.
