Pakistan says it struck 10 sites in Afghanistan after accusing Kabul of drone attacks

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Pakistan said it carried out airstrikes early Thursday on 10 sites in Afghanistan that it said were used to launch drone attacks against Pakistan a day earlier, a sharp escalation in their recent fighting that threatens international mediation efforts.

In Afghanistan’s southeastern Khost province, Mustaghfir Gurbaz, a spokesman for the province’s governor, said Pakistani airstrikes had targeted several sites, including near the provincial center, at around 3:30 a.m. (7 p.m. Wednesday ET), but that they had not caused any casualties.

The announcement of the strikes by Pakistani Information Minister Attaullah Tarar in a post on X came after officials said Afghanistan’s Taliban forces had fired eight drones and shelled Pakistani border posts after Pakistani troops foiled what they described as a cross-border infiltration attempt by militants.

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The Afghan government had no immediate comment. However, Afghan government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid on Wednesday denied that Afghan forces had carried out any drone attacks on Pakistan. The conflicting statements came two days after Pakistani fighter jets struck sites in eastern Afghanistan that Islamabad said were militant hideouts.

The accounts could not be independently verified. The escalation threatens mediation efforts by…

Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/business