Russia has intervened between Pakistan and Afghanistan after military conflict between the countries escalated overnight.
“Our patience has reached its limit. Now it is open war between us and you,” Pakistani defence minister Khawaja Asif said on X on Friday.
The Kremlin urged the countries to stop cross-border strikes immediately, calling on the nations to resolve their differences through diplomacy, the Russian foreign ministry said.
It comes as Pakistani forces carried out airstrikes on Kabul and two other provinces in what it said was a retaliation to Taliban’s cross-border attacks late-Thursday night. The Taliban had previously warned it would respond militarily to Pakistani airstrikes on Sunday that killed 13 civilians.
Witnesses on the ground in Afghanistan confirmed fighter jets overhead and explosions in parts of Kabul. Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said no casualties were reported so far. Pakistan also carried out airstrikes in Kandahar to the south and in the southeastern province of Paktia, Mujahid said.
This is the latest escalation of violence between the neighbouring countries that made a Qatar-mediated ceasefire appear increasingly shaky.
Two senior Pakistani security officials said its military carried out airstrikes targeting what they described as Afghan military facilities in Kabul, Kandahar and Paktia provinces, allegedly destroying two brigade bases.
Key Points
- Pakistani defence minister Khwaja Asif declares 'open war' against Taliban in Afghanistan
- Photo shows major airstrikes on Kabul, targets attacked by Pakistan
- Why old allies Pakistan and Afghanistan's Taliban are fighting at the border
- Taliban's strikes hit Pakistan villages near border but Islamabad denies casualties
- UN official urges Afghanistan and Pakistan to end cross-border conflict with dialogue
Why Pakistan and Afghan Taliban are fighting and what happens next
14:10 , Maira ButtPakistan has announced it is now in an “open war” with the Taliban-led government of Afghanistan as it carried out major airstrikes on Afghan cities overnight, escalating months of simmering border tensions between the Islamic neighbours.
The air and ground strikes in the early hours of Friday targeted Taliban military posts, headquarters and ammunition depots in multiple sectors along the border, just hours after the Taliban launched an air attack on Pakistan’s border forces.
Both sides have reported heavy losses in the fighting, with Pakistan saying it has killed 133 Afghan Taliban fighters and wounded more than 200, with 27 posts destroyed and nine captured, following months of tit-for-tat clashes.
Why Pakistan and Afghan Taliban are fighting and what happens next
Witnesses describe moments attacks took place
13:50 , Maira ButtKabul taxi driver Tamim said he was asleep when he heard the sound of an aircraft, which was followed by strikes on what appeared to be a weapons depot.
“We woke up, and the plane came and dropped two bombs, then flew away again. After that, we heard explosions,” he said.
“Everyone, in panic, ran down from the second floor of the house. The ammunition inside the depot kept exploding on its own.”
Reuters witnesses in Kabul said many ambulance sirens could be heard following loud blasts and the sound of jets.
Pakistan says strikes will continue on order of PM
13:32 , Maira ButtAfghanistan said on Friday that it hopes to resolve its conflict with Pakistan through dialogue, according to Afghanistan’s spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid.
But Pakistan’s military says it is continuing its operation at the direction of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif.
Watch: Afghanistan retaliates as clashes between Pakistan continue
13:01 , Maira ButtMapped: Pakistani airstrikes target ‘insurgent camps’ and military posts in Afghanistan
12:40 , Maira ButtPakistan carried out airstrikes in Afghanistan on Friday and declared “open war” with its western neighbour as tensions over rising militant violence in the region boiled over.
The airstrikes hit the capital of Kabul and the city of Kandahar, where senior leaders of the ruling Taliban, including supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, were said to be based.
Islamabad claimed the strikes targeted Islamist and ethnic insurgents responsible for carrying out terrorist attacks inside Pakistan.
Mapped: Pakistani strikes target ‘insurgent camps’ and military posts in Afghanistan
In pictures: Pakistan and Afghanistan at 'open war' as allies urge both sides to stop
12:25 , Maira Butt
Russia, China, Turkey and Saudi involved in mediation amid strikes
12:10 , Maira ButtRussia’s foreign ministry called on Pakistan and Afghanistan to halt the conflict immediately and to return to the negotiating table for talks.
A Turkish diplomatic source urged the same. Officials from Russia, Turkey, China and Saudi Arabia are reportedly trying to mediate, according to diplomats and news reports.
Pakistani military confirms 12 soldiers killed
11:51 , Maira ButtPakistan’s military has confirmed the deaths of 12 soldiers amid deadly clashes with Afghanistan.
The Taliban insist that 55 Pakistanis have been killed and several others have been “captured alive”.
Taliban wants to resolve conflict with Pakistan through talks, says spokesperson
11:42 , Maira ButtThe Afghan Taliban has expressed its willingness to resolve the ongoing conflict with Pakistan through talks, according to the administration’s spokesperson.
The country wants to resolve its latest conflict with Pakistan through dialogue, Afghan Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid told reporters on Friday amid deadly clashes.
Russia calls on Afghanistan and Pakistan to cease fighting
11:30 , Arpan RaiRussia has urged Afghanistan and Pakistan to halt cross-border strikes immediately and resolve their differences through diplomatic means, the Russian foreign ministry said this morning.
A look at death toll claimed by Pakistan and Afghanistan after overnight attacks
11:20 , Arpan RaiAfghanistan's defence ministry said overnight that 55 Pakistani soldiers had been killed, including some whose bodies were taken into Afghanistan, and that "several others were captured alive."
It said eight Afghan soldiers were killed and 11 wounded. The ministry said it destroyed 19 Pakistani army posts and two bases and that the fighting ended around midnight, about four hours after it began Thursday.
Pakistan's information minister Attaullah Tarar said two Pakistani soldiers were killed and three wounded.
Mosharraf Ali Zaidi, a spokesperson for Pakistan's prime minister Shehbaz Sharif, denied that any Pakistani soldiers had been captured. In a post on X, he said at least 133 Afghan fighters were killed and more than 200 wounded.
He also said 27 Afghan posts were destroyed and nine fighters captured. He did not specify where the casualties occurred but said additional losses were estimated in strikes on military targets in Kabul, Paktia and Kandahar.
Flights continue out of Pakistan, Afghan airspace after overnight clashes
11:10 , Arpan RaiBoth airspaces, of Pakistan and Afghanistan, have reported normal operations after a tense night of exchanging fire.
Sources inside Kabul told The Independent that there has been no impact on the airspace in both countries.
Commercial flights operated to and from Kabul without any delay on 27 February morning, they said.
Russia urges 'friends' Afghanistan and Pakistan to end conflict and negotiate
11:03 , Arpan RaiRussia has urged Afghanistan and Pakistan to end the cross-border attacks immediately and resolve their conflict by diplomatic means.
"Of course, the direct military clashes that have taken place do not bode well. Therefore we hope that they will cease as soon as possible... Like everyone else, we are closely monitoring this situation," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Peskov confirmed a visit to Russia by Pakistani prime minister Shehbaz Sharif was being prepared, without giving a date. State news agency RIA said it would happen next week.
Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Moscow was concerned by the sharp military escalation between the two neighbours.
“We call on our friends Afghanistan and Pakistan to abandon this dangerous confrontation and return to the negotiating table to resolve all differences through political and diplomatic means," she wrote on Telegram.
Russia is the only country to officially recognise the Taliban government of Afghanistan, and also has good relations with Pakistan.
Why is Pakistan attacking Afghanistan repeatedly?
11:01 , Arpan RaiPakistan conducted airstrikes over the weekend in Afghanistan claiming they were targeting training camps of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and the Islamic State groups in the Khorasan province.
Pakistan welcomed the return to power of the Taliban in 2021, with then prime minister Imran Khan saying that Afghans had "broken the shackles of slavery".
But Islamabad soon found that the Taliban were not as cooperative as it had hoped.
Islamabad says the leadership of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and many of its fighters are based in Afghanistan and that insurgents seeking independence for the southwestern province of Balochistan also use the neighbouring country as a safe haven. Kabul denies the allegations.
Both the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and the Baloch insurgents have carried out many deadly attacks inside Pakistan in recent years.
Such attacks have increased every year since 2022, according to Armed Conflict Location and Event Data, a global monitoring organisation.
Attacks in Pakistan rose nearly fourfold to 2,425 in 2025 from 658 in 2022, with attacks by the the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan increasing more than seven-fold to 838 from 118 in that period.
Watch: Afghanistan retaliates as clashes between Pakistan continue
10:50 , Arpan RaiTurkey discusses conflict with Pakistan, Afghanistan, as well as Saudi, Qatar
10:48 , Arpan RaiTurkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan discussed the conflict between Afghanistan and Pakistan in separate calls on Friday with counterparts from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, a Turkish diplomatic source said, reported Reuters.
The source provided no further details.
British foreign secretary Cooper says 'deeply concerned' with clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan
10:40 , Arpan RaiForeign secretary Yvette Cooper expressed alarm at the cross-border attacks between Pakistan and Afghanistan after the two exchanged strikes overnight.
“The UK is deeply concerned by the significant escalation in tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan. We urge both sides to take immediate steps toward de‑escalation, avoid further harm to civilians, and re‑engage in mediated dialogue,” she said.
The UK is deeply concerned by the significant escalation in tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
— Yvette Cooper (@YvetteCooperMP) February 27, 2026
We urge both sides to take immediate steps toward de‑escalation, avoid further harm to civilians, and re‑engage in mediated dialogue.
Afghanistan says it used drones to hit targets in Pakistan
10:26 , Arpan RaiThe Taliban officials said they "successfully conducted" air strikes using drones to hit military targets in Pakistan.
The remarks came from the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s defence ministry and a government spokesperson as fighting between the neighbours continued.
Pakistani information minister Attaullah Tarar said Pakistani Taliban militants had tried to use drones but they were brought down by anti-drone defence units and no damage was reported.
Mapped: Where has Pakistan hit out against 'military targets' inside Afghanistan?
10:09 , Arpan RaiWhy Pakistan and Afghan Taliban are fighting and what happens next
10:00 , Arpan RaiPakistan has announced it is now in an “open war” with the Taliban-led Afghanistan government as it carried out major air strikes on Afghan cities overnight, escalating months of simmering border tensions between the Islamic neighbours.
The air and ground strikes in the early hours of Friday targeted Taliban military posts, headquarters and ammunition depots in multiple sectors along the border, just hours after the Taliban launched an air attack on Pakistan’s border forces.
Both sides have reported heavy losses in the fighting with Pakistan saying it has killed 133 Afghan Taliban fighters and wounded more than 200, with 27 posts destroyed and nine captured, following months of tit-for-tat clashes.
Why Pakistan and Afghan Taliban are fighting and what happens next
UN special rapporteur for Afghanistan calls for 'calm and respect' amid conflict
10:00 , Arpan RaiTop UN officials have urging Pakistan and Afghanistan to observe peace in the interest of protecting civilians.
“Once again I call for calm and respect for international human rights & humanitarian law, in particular the protection of civilians, in the current tensions between #Pakistan and #Afghanistan which have very regrettably flowed into violence. Immediate de-escalation is essential,” said Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan.
Once again I call for calm and respect for international human rights & humanitarian law, in particular the protection of civilians, in the current tensions between #Pakistan and #Afghanistan which have very regrettably flowed into violence. Immediate de-escalation is essential
— UN Special Rapporteur Richard Bennett (@SR_Afghanistan) February 27, 2026
What happened when Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed to a Qatar-mediated ceasefire last year
09:45 , Arpan RaiPakistan and Afghanistan are facing each other once again in a military confrontation, just months after agreeing to a temporary ceasefire.
In October last year, the two sides agreed to a "temporary ceasefire" after a Pakistani airstrike and ground fighting killed over a dozen civilians and sent tensions soaring.
The truce aimed to halt hostilities along their volatile, contested frontier.
Those clashes had shattered a fragile peace achieved following a previous round of fighting that killed dozens. The confrontations were the worst between the two countries since the Taliban's return to power in 2021.
In a statement after the truce was agreed, Islamabad said "both sides will make sincere efforts, through constructive dialogue, to find a positive solution to this complex yet resolvable issue", adding the ceasefire was agreed upon the request of the Afghan government.
Afghan government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid, however, asserted that the agreement resulted from the "request and insistence of the Pakistani side". He added that Kabul had directed its forces to observe the ceasefire, "provided the other side does not commit aggression".
Pakistan and Afghanistan agree temporary ceasefire after airstrike
China, other allies ask Pakistan and Afghanistan to cool off
09:38 , Arpan RaiChina's foreign ministry said it had been mediating in the conflict through its own channels and was deeply concerned about the escalation.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia's foreign ministers spoke on Friday to discuss reducing tensions, Riyadh's foreign office said without providing details on whether it was involved in brokering a ceasefire.
Russia, the only country to formally recognise the Taliban government, called for an end to hostilities and said it would consider mediating talks if asked by both parties, state media reported citing Moscow's foreign ministry.
Iran offers mediation for Pakistan and Afghanistan to end hostilities
09:30 , Arpan RaiIran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi announced Tehran’s intention to help "facilitate dialogue" between Pakistan and Afghanistan as tensions between the two countries surged overnight.
Araghchi also urged the two sides to "resolve their differences through good neighbourliness and dialogue".
Iran, a long-standing ally of Afghanistan, had also offered to mediate between the two countries back when border tensions were first rising.
Pakistan defence minister lists Taliban's human rights violations against women: 'Patience running out'
09:15 , Arpan RaiPakistan’s defence minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif listed several reasons for attacking Afghanistan overnight and said it was tired of its neighbour’s behaviour, including rampant abuse of human rights of women and children.
Asid said Pakistan had hoped for peace in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of Nato forces and expected the Taliban to focus on the welfare of the Afghan people and regional stability.
Instead, he alleged, the Taliban had turned Afghanistan "into a colony of India," gathered militants from around the world and begun "exporting terrorism."
Asif also accused the Taliban government of denying Afghans basic human rights, including rights for women that he said are guaranteed under Islam, without providing details or evidence.
He said Pakistan had tried to maintain stability both directly and through friendly countries. "Today, when attempts were made to target Pakistan with aggression, by the grace of God, our armed forces are giving a decisive response," he said.
Authorities in Pakistan said dozens of Afghan refugees who were waiting to return home from the northwestern Torkham border have been taken back to safer places following the eruption of clashes.
Why is Pakistan attacking Afghanistan repeatedly?
09:00 , Arpan RaiPakistan conducted airstrikes over the weekend in Afghanistan claiming they were targeting training camps of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and the Islamic State groups in the Khorasan province.
Pakistan welcomed the return to power of the Taliban in 2021, with then prime minister Imran Khan saying that Afghans had "broken the shackles of slavery".
But Islamabad soon found that the Taliban were not as cooperative as it had hoped.
Islamabad says the leadership of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and many of its fighters are based in Afghanistan and that insurgents seeking independence for the southwestern province of Balochistan also use the neighbouring country as a safe haven. Kabul denies the allegations.
Both the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and the Baloch insurgents have carried out many deadly attacks inside Pakistan in recent years.
Such attacks have increased every year since 2022, according to Armed Conflict Location and Event Data, a global monitoring organisation.
Attacks in Pakistan rose nearly fourfold to 2,425 in 2025 from 658 in 2022, with attacks by the the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan increasing more than seven-fold to 838 from 118 in that period.
Pakistan threatens it can 'crush any aggression' after conflict with Taliban
08:54 , Arpan RaiPakistani prime minister Shehbaz Sharif issued a warning to Afghanistan amid clashes and said its forces can “crush” any aggression.
"Our forces have the full capability to crush any aggressive ambitions," Sharif said on X.
"The entire nation stands shoulder to shoulder with the Pakistan armed forces," he said.
Flights continue out of Pakistan, Afghan airspace after overnight clashes
08:45 , Arpan RaiBoth airspaces, of Pakistan and Afghanistan, have reported normal operations after a tense night of exchanging fire.
Sources inside Kabul told The Independent that there has been no impact on the airspace in both countries.
Commercial flights operated to and from Kabul without any delay on 27 February morning, they said.
Pakistan claims Afghan forces raised white flags during overnight firing
08:30 , Arpan RaiIn Islamabad, two senior security officials said Afghan forces at some border posts had raised white flags, a gesture typically interpreted as a request to halt firing.
The officials said Pakistani forces were continuing what they described as a strong retaliatory response to "unprovoked aggression" by the Afghan Taliban and had destroyed several key Taliban posts along the border.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly.
Pakistan carries out major overnight airstrikes on Kabul
08:20 , Arpan RaiPakistan’s forces have struck targets inside Afghanistan's major cities overnight, Pakistani and Taliban officials said on Friday, as cross-border fighting intensified following months of tensions escalated once again.
Security sources in Pakistan said the strikes involved air and ground strikes against Taliban posts, headquarters and ammunition depots in multiple sectors along the border.
Both sides reported heavy losses, issuing sharply differing figures that The Independent has not verified.
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said Pakistani forces carried out airstrikes in parts of Kabul, Kandahar and Paktia.
"Pakistani counterstrikes against targets in Afghanistan continue," a Pakistani government spokesperson, Mosharraf Zaidi, said in a post on X, describing the action as a response to "unprovoked Afghan attacks”.
Taliban says 55 Pakistani soldiers killed while Pakistan says 133 Afghan fighters killed
08:01 , Arpan RaiAfghanistan's defence ministry said overnight that 55 Pakistani soldiers had been killed, including some whose bodies were taken into Afghanistan, and that "several others were captured alive."
It said eight Afghan soldiers were killed and 11 wounded. The ministry said it destroyed 19 Pakistani army posts and two bases and that the fighting ended around midnight, about four hours after it began Thursday.
Pakistan's information minister Attaullah Tarar said two Pakistani soldiers were killed and three wounded.
Mosharraf Ali Zaidi, a spokesperson for Pakistan's prime minister Shehbaz Sharif, denied that any Pakistani soldiers had been captured. In a post on X, he said at least 133 Afghan fighters were killed and more than 200 wounded.
He also said 27 Afghan posts were destroyed and nine fighters captured. He did not specify where the casualties occurred but said additional losses were estimated in strikes on military targets in Kabul, Paktia and Kandahar.
Why Pakistan and Afghan Taliban are fighting and what happens next
07:54 , Arpan RaiPakistan has announced it is now in an “open war” with the Taliban-led Afghanistan government as it carried out major air strikes on Afghan cities overnight, escalating months of simmering border tensions between the Islamic neighbours.
The air and ground strikes in the early hours of Friday targeted Taliban military posts, headquarters and ammunition depots in multiple sectors along the border, just hours after the Taliban launched an air attack on Pakistan’s border forces.
Both sides have reported heavy losses in the fighting with Pakistan saying it has killed 133 Afghan Taliban fighters and wounded more than 200, with 27 posts destroyed and nine captured, following months of tit-for-tat clashes.
Why Pakistan and Afghan Taliban are fighting and what happens next
What sparked the latest round of tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan?
07:39 , Arpan RaiThe day before the Sunday strikes on Afghanistan which left 13 civilians dead, Pakistani security sources said they had "irrefutable evidence" that militants were using Afghan soil to attack Pakistan.
The sources listed seven planned or successful attacks by militants since late 2024 that they said were connected to Afghanistan.
One attack last week that killed 11 security personnel and two civilians in Bajaur district was undertaken by an Afghan national, according to Pakistani security sources. This attack was claimed by the TTP.
Pakistan's Khwaja Asif declares 'open war' against Taliban in Afghanistan
07:30 , Arpan RaiPakistan’s defence minister Khwaja Asif has said the country is now launching an open war against Afghanistan and accused the neighbour of harbouring terrorists.
“They gathered all the terrorists of the world in Afghanistan and began exporting terrorism. They deprived their own people of basic human rights. They snatched away the rights that Islam grants to women,” Asif said, accusing Afghanistan as a proxy of India, without providing details.
“Our cup of patience has overflowed. Now it is open war between us and you,” he said.
Kabul residents confirm 'earthquake-like explosions' in their neighbourhood
07:03 , Arpan RaiPakistani fighter jets roared in the skies of the Afghan capital Kabul and gave many residents a sleepless night. Several said it “felt like an earthquake”.
“I woke up to an earthquake-like noise at 2am, and realised Pakistan attacked us,” a resident told The Independent.
“First, we thought it was an earthquake, because there was an earthquake in Kabul a few days ago,” a resident of Dashti Barchi told the BBC. “Then we heard a loud explosion."
Residents also reported hearing jets overhead after the initial explosions rocked the city. “When we saw the jets overhead, we realized they were Pakistani aircraft," they said.
In photos: Taliban troops deployed as Afghanistan wakes up to bombings from Pakistan
06:33 , Arpan Rai
Russia calls on Afghanistan and Pakistan to cease fighting
06:15 , Arpan RaiRussia has urged Afghanistan and Pakistan to halt cross-border strikes immediately and resolve their differences through diplomatic means, the Russian foreign ministry said this morning.
How do Pakistan and Afghanistan’s militaries and nuclear arsenal stack up?
06:09 , Arpan RaiCross-border fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan intensified overnight, with both sides claiming heavy losses and the Pakistani defence minister saying his country was in an "open war" with its neighbour.
As tensions persist, here is a look at how Pakistan dwarfs Afghanistan's military forces and arsenals, according to data from the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies.
Pakistan's armed forces benefit from good recruitment and retention, bolstered by equipment from its main defence partner China. Islamabad continues to invest in its military nuclear programmes and is also modernising its navy and air force.
The capability of the Afghan Taliban's armed forces, meanwhile, is declining, with a fall in their ability to use foreign equipment that the Islamist group seized when it returned to power in the landlocked country in 2021.
A lack of international recognition for the Taliban administration has also hurt military modernisation.
How do Pakistan and Afghanistan’s militaries and nuclear arsenal stack up?
Why is Pakistan attacking Afghanistan repeatedly?
05:55 , Arpan RaiPakistan conducted airstrikes over the weekend in Afghanistan claiming they were targeting training camps of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and the Islamic State groups in the Khorasan province.
Pakistan welcomed the return to power of the Taliban in 2021, with then prime minister Imran Khan saying that Afghans had "broken the shackles of slavery".
But Islamabad soon found that the Taliban were not as cooperative as it had hoped.
Islamabad says the leadership of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and many of its fighters are based in Afghanistan and that insurgents seeking independence for the southwestern province of Balochistan also use the neighbouring country as a safe haven. Kabul denies the allegations.
Both the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and the Baloch insurgents have carried out many deadly attacks inside Pakistan in recent years.
Such attacks have increased every year since 2022, according to Armed Conflict Location and Event Data, a global monitoring organisation.
Attacks in Pakistan rose nearly fourfold to 2,425 in 2025 from 658 in 2022, with attacks by the the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan increasing more than seven-fold to 838 from 118 in that period.
UN officials urge Afghanistan and Pakistan to end cross-border conflict with dialogue
05:30 , Arpan RaiUN human rights chief Volker Türk has appealed for dialogue between Afghanistan and Pakistan amid their border clashes and deadly airstrikes.
“This situation calls for urgent political dialogue, rather than escalating the use of force,” the High Commissioner for Human Rights said, following a sharp increase in civilian casualties in cross-border clashes with Pakistani military forces, who have been reportedly targeting armed militants sheltering in Afghanistan.
Iran says it is ready to mediate between Pakistan and Afghanistan to end hostilities
05:20 , Arpan RaiIran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi announced Tehran’s intention to help "facilitate dialogue" between Pakistan and Afghanistan as tensions between the two countries surged overnight.
Araghchi also urged the two sides to "resolve their differences through good neighbourliness and dialogue".
Iran, a long-standing ally of Afghanistan, had also offered to mediate between the two countries back when border tensions were first rising.
What happened when Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed to a Qatar-mediated ceasefire last year
04:57 , Arpan RaiPakistan and Afghanistan are facing each other once again in a military confrontation, just months after agreeing to a temporary ceasefire.
In October last year, the two sides agreed to a "temporary ceasefire" after a Pakistani airstrike and ground fighting killed over a dozen civilians and sent tensions soaring.
The truce aimed to halt hostilities along their volatile, contested frontier.
Those clashes had shattered a fragile peace achieved following a previous round of fighting that killed dozens. The confrontations were the worst between the two countries since the Taliban's return to power in 2021.
In a statement after the truce was agreed, Islamabad said "both sides will make sincere efforts, through constructive dialogue, to find a positive solution to this complex yet resolvable issue", adding the ceasefire was agreed upon the request of the Afghan government.
Afghan government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid, however, asserted that the agreement resulted from the "request and insistence of the Pakistani side". He added that Kabul had directed its forces to observe the ceasefire, "provided the other side does not commit aggression".
Pakistan and Afghanistan agree temporary ceasefire after airstrike
Pakistan threatens it can 'crush any aggression' after conflict with Taliban
04:38 , Arpan RaiPakistani prime minister Shehbaz Sharif issued a warning to Afghanistan amid clashes and said its forces can “crush” any aggression.
"Our forces have the full capability to crush any aggressive ambitions," Sharif said on X.
"The entire nation stands shoulder to shoulder with the Pakistan armed forces," he said.
All we know about earlier Pakistan strikes on Afghanistan
04:21 , Arpan RaiThe UN had issued a statement earlier this week confirming that Pakistan’s attacks on Afghanistan left 13 civilians dead amid an escalation in the armed conflict between the two neighbours.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (Unama) said it has “credible reports” that overnight Pakistani attacks targeted civilian areas in the Behsud and Khogyani districts of Nangarhar province in the country’s eastern region, killing and injuring 20 civilians.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are once again facing a major military confrontation with fears of disruption of a fragile ceasefire along their 2,600km-border.
You can read more on the earlier strikes here:
At least 13 civilians killed in Pakistani airstrikes in Afghanistan, UN says
Photo shows major airstrikes on Kabul, targets attacked by Pakistan
03:52 , Arpan Rai
Why Pakistan and Afghanistan's Taliban are fighting at the border
03:42 , Arpan RaiTension has been high between the two neighbors for months, with deadly border clashes in October killing dozens of soldiers, civilians and suspected militants.
The violence followed explosions in Kabul that Afghan officials blamed on Pakistan. Islamabad, at the time, conducted strikes deep inside Afghanistan to target militant hideouts.
A Qatari-mediated ceasefire between the two countries has largely held, but the two sides have still occasionally traded fire across the border. Several rounds of peace talks in November failed to produce a formal agreement.
On Sunday, Pakistan's military carried out strikes along the border with Afghanistan, saying it had killed at least 70 militants.
Afghanistan rejected the claim, saying dozens of civilians had been killed, including women and children. The defence ministry said "various civilian areas" in eastern Afghanistan had been hit, including a religious madrassa and several homes.
The ministry said the strikes were a violation of Afghanistan's airspace and sovereignty.
Militant violence has surged in Pakistan in recent years, much of which Pakistan blames on the Pakistani Taliban, or TTP, and outlawed Baloch separatist groups.
The TTP is separate from but closely allied with Afghanistan's Taliban.
Islamabad accuses the TTP of operating from inside Afghanistan, a charge both the group and Kabul deny.
Taliban's strikes hit Pakistan villages near border but Islamabad denies casualties
03:38 , Arpan RaiOn the Pakistani side of the border, police said residents were also evacuating to safer areas, while some Afghan refugees who had been waiting to cross back into Afghanistan were also moved to secure locations.
Pakistan launched a sweeping crackdown on migrants in October 2023 and has expelled hundreds of thousands of people.
Pakistani police said mortars fired from Afghanistan had landed in nearby villages, but there were no reports of civilian casualties.
"Pakistan will take all necessary measures to ensure its territorial integrity and the safety and security of its citizens," Pakistan's information ministry said in a post on X.
Pakistan strikes hit refugee camp in Afghan border areas
03:34 , Arpan RaiAfghan authorities were evacuating a refugee camp near the Torkham border crossing after several refugees were wounded, said Qureshi Badlon, head of Torkham's Information and Public Awareness Board.
The defence ministry said 13 civilians were wounded in a missile strike on the camp, including women and children.
Watch: Afghanistan retaliates as clashes between Pakistan continue
03:33 , Arpan RaiPakistan claims 133 Taliban soldiers killed in overnight attack on Afghanistan
03:23 , Arpan RaiPakistan has claimed major losses inflicted to the Afghanistan Taliban’s military infrastructure, an official from the prime minister office said.
The strikes have destroyed 27 military posts of Taliban and captured nine others, said Mosharraf Zaidi, adding that at least 133 Afghan fighters were killed and more than 200 wounded.
He claimed that the strikes have also destroyed more than 80 tanks, artillery and armed personnel carriers.
"Pakistan’s immediate and effective response to aggression continues," he wrote on X.
The Independent cannot verify the claims.
The spokesperson also denied that any Pakistani soldiers had been captured.
Zaidi added that there would be "many more casualties estimated in strikes in Kabul, Paktia and Kandahar military targets”.
Pakistan PM says 'fully capable of thwarting any aggressive intentions'
03:06 , Arpan RaiPakistan's prime minister Shehbaz Sharif has said his country's forces are "fully capable of thwarting any aggressive intentions".
"There will be no compromise on the defense of the beloved homeland and every aggression will be met with a befitting reply," he said, in a series of posts on the Pakistani government's X account.
Pakistani PM Khwaja Asif declares 'open war' against Taliban in Afghanistan
03:03 , Arpan RaiPakistan’s defence minister Khwaja Asif has said the country is now launching an open war against Afghanistan and accused the neighbour of harbouring terrorists.
“They gathered all the terrorists of the world in Afghanistan and began exporting terrorism. They deprived their own people of basic human rights. They snatched away the rights that Islam grants to women,” Asif said, accusing Afghanistan as a proxy of India, without providing details.
“Our cup of patience has overflowed. Now it is open war between us and you,” he said.
Pakistan strikes targets inside Afghanistan cities
03:00 , Arpan RaiPakistan’s forces have struck targets inside Afghanistan's major cities overnight, Pakistani and Taliban officials said on Friday, as cross-border fighting intensified following months of tensions escalated once again.
Security sources in Pakistan said the strikes involved air and ground strikes against Taliban posts, headquarters and ammunition depots in multiple sectors along the border.
Both sides reported heavy losses, issuing sharply differing figures that The Independent has not verified.
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said Pakistani forces carried out airstrikes in parts of Kabul, Kandahar and Paktia.
"Pakistani counterstrikes against targets in Afghanistan continue," a Pakistani government spokesperson, Mosharraf Zaidi, said in a post on X, describing the action as a response to "unprovoked Afghan attacks”.
