Pakistan has declared “open war” on the Taliban after bombing Afghanistan’s major cities, including its capital Kabul, on Friday.
The strikes mark a serious escalation after months of clashes between the warring nations, threatening the breakdown of a fragile Qatar-mediated ceasefire negotiated last year.
Both sides claim their actions are in retaliation in response to provocation from the other.
“Our cup of patience has overflowed. Now it is open war between us and you [Afghanistan],” Pakistan’s defence minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said in the aftermath of the escalation.
On Thursday night, the Taliban launched a large-scale offensive against Pakistani military posts along their shared border, which runs 2,600km (1,615 miles).
They had previously threatened action after a Pakistani attack on Sunday killed 13 civilians.
The group said the operation marked a “response to repeated provocations and violations by Pakistani military circles”, in a statement by Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesperson for the Taliban administration.
But Pakistan insisted the actions were “unprovoked” and launched what it called an “immediate and effective response” in return. Major cities, including Kabul and Kandahar and the province of Paktia, were hit in the attacks.
Thick plumes of black smoke were seen rising about the residential neighbourhood of Darulaman in western Kabul and a fierce blaze engulfed part of a depot in video footage verified by Reuters.
The clashes have resulted in heavy casualties with 274 Afghan Taliban officials killed and more than 200 wounded, according to Pakistan’s military spokesperson Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry. He said 12 Pakistani soldiers had died.
At least 22 Afghan military targets are reported to have been destroyed.
Afghanistan’s defence ministry says more than 55 Pakistani soldiers have been killed and several “captured alive”. It says eight Afghan soldiers have died, while 11 others have been wounded. It says that it has hit 19 Pakistani military outposts.
The countries’ allies have expressed concern about the escalation and urged both parties to resolve their differences through diplomacy.
Russia’s foreign ministry called on Pakistan and Afghanistan to halt the conflict with immediate effect and to return to the negotiating table.
Officials from Russia, Turkey, China and Saudi Arabia are reportedly attempting to mediate, according to diplomats and news reports. Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, announced Tehran is also ready to mediate.
UN human rights chief Volker Turk also appealed for “urgent political dialogue” between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Afghanistan said on Friday that it hopes to resolve its conflict with Pakistan through dialogue, according to Afghanistan’s spokesperson Mr Mujahid.
But Pakistan’s military says it is continuing its operation at the direction of prime minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Islamabad has long accused Kabul of harbouring Tehreek-e-Taliban militants, also known as the “Pakistani Taliban”, claims that the Taliban deny.
The group have been involved in several terror attacks across Pakistan as Pakistan saw its deadliest year for combat deaths in a decade in 2025 due to counterterrorism operations.
Both countries share a significant Pashtun population, complicating the conflict.
The instability comes at a delicate time for the region, which is facing the prospect of war between the US and Iran after American warships and fighter jets inched ever-closer to the Islamic Republic in recent weeks.
Afghanistan is gripped by extreme poverty, unemployment and hunger since a collapse in the delivery of aid after the Taliban returned to power in 2021 after the withdrawal of US forces and a two-decade insurgency against the US-backed government.
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