The short-lived truce had been brokered by both parties in anticipation of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr. Ziaur Rahman Speenghar, a director at the information and culture department of Afghanistan’s Kunar province, reported that Pakistani forces fired numerous artillery shells into the Narai and Sarkano districts, which caused the death of two civilians and injured eight more after the ceasefire lapsed.
Afghan border forces retaliated, claiming they destroyed three Pakistani military posts and killed one individual. These assertions could not be independently verified. There was no immediate response from Pakistan’s military. However, a local Pakistani official in the northwest alleged that Afghan forces sparked the exchange of gunfire in several locations.
This latest outbreak of violence follows an agreement reached about a week ago by both sides to suspend hostilities after Pakistani airstrikes in Afghanistan, requested by Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Qatar. This cessation came after Pakistani airstrikes that the Afghan Taliban government asserted targeted a drug rehabilitation facility in Kabul, leading to over 400 fatalities. This death toll has not been independently confirmed.
Pakistan has refuted claims of targeting civilians, asserting that its strikes were aimed at an ammunition depot.
In another development, the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), announced the resumption of attacks within Pakistan after observing its own three-day Eid ceasefire.
The TTP, while distinct, is allied with the Afghan Taliban and has intensified assaults within Pakistan since the Afghan Taliban regained power in 2021. The TTP is recognized as a terrorist organization by both the United States and the United Nations. Pakistan accuses Kabul of harboring TTP leaders and thousands of members who conduct cross-border assaults.
Kabul has denied these allegations, but Pakistan has committed to continuing operations against the TTP and its affiliates within Afghanistan until the Taliban government guarantees that it will prevent the TTP and other militants from using Afghan territory for attacks.
