The two countries have entered into a complete stalemate, with both claiming that they have sustained heavy amounts of fatalities but neither country accepting each other’s casualty reports.

Following is a breakdown of what has happened, who has made what claims, and what the international response has been.

Why did the Escalation Happen?

Initially, there had been a considerable amount of geopolitics preventing hostilities between Pakistan and Afghanistan for several months due to increases of violence along their bordering regions and at the borders of their respective militaries’ positions. 

In October, combat operations at the border killed a number of soldiers, civilians, and suspected terrorists. In November peace talks were made, but were never officially agreed upon, so a mediated ceasefire between Pakistan and Afghanistan led to a decrease in hostilities, but the peace was never fully bestowed in the regions. Sigh! 

This week Pakistan conducted an air attack within Afghanistan targeting the cities of Kabul, Kandahar and Paktia. Following these attacks, Afghan officials reported that Pakistan’s attacks on their country caused devastation in the city of Kabul; however, the Pakistan military reported that the reason for the air strikes into these cities was to take out military installations and hideouts for terrorist-type groups.

The operations conducted by the Pakistani military were titled Operation “Ghazab Lil Haq.”

According to information released by the Pakistan Information Ministry, Al Jazeera quoted that the strikes completely destroyed all military installations that were targeted by the Pakistan air forces.

But looking at the other side of the same coin, the Taliban government of Afghanistan did not accept the justification of the air strikes conducted by the Pakistan military and said it outright that the strikes conducted by the Pakistan military violated the sovereignty of the government of Afghanistan.

What Has Happened On The Ground? All About The Attacks 

Witnesses in Kabul state that they heard 3 explosions occurring. According to the Times of India, aircraft flew overhead, followed by loud explosions that resounded throughout the city, which lasted for over two hours, after becoming silent; however, there was also extended gunfire that shook the ground. 

In the case of Kandahar, residents told AFP that they could see jets flying over them. According to Afghanistan’s Defence ministry, 8 of their troops were killed in the ground assault and 11 more were severely hurt.

An Afghan official told AFP that mortar fire had hit a refugee camp located close to Torkham in Nangarhar province. Qureshi Badlun, the information officer for Nangarhar, said ““A mortar shell has hit the camp and unfortunately seven of our refugees have been wounded, and the condition of one woman is serious.”

Afghan officials later reported that 13 people were injured at Nangarhar, including women and children.

As far as Pakistanis are concerned, they also reported that mortar rounds from Afghanistan impacted adjacent villages, but the local police said they had no reports of any casualties in these villages. Hmm, sounds like a pickle, sure. 

Cross-border fire has also been reported by both sides in the Torkham area.

Both Afghan and Pakistani officials have evacuated the refugee camp located near the border; Afghan officials report that there is no longer any occupation in that camp and Pakistani officials will be relocating some of the residents of villages along the border to safer parts of the country.

The 2 countries’ borders have remained essentially closed since mid-October, although there are limited occasions when Afghans returning home are using different border crossings.

The Disparity of Casualty Figures 

The most noticeable thing about this conflict is the wide gap in numbers between the two sides regarding how many people died as a result of fighting. The numbers will seriously make you gawk and say, “WHATTTTT?”

Pakistan’s Claims

NDTV and the Times of India list the following as claimed by the Pakistani government:

– 133 Afghan forces reportedly killed at the hands of Pakistan’s military

– 3 Afghan soldiers reportedly captured by Afghan forces, with one being a Major

– Destruction of many Afghan military facilities and headquarters

– Denial of the capture of any Pakistani forces by either Afghan or Coalition forces

The spokesperson for Prime Minister Shehab Sharif is Mosharraf Ali Zaidi. He states, “A total of 133 Afghan Taliban are confirmed killed, more than 200 wounded. Many more casualties estimated in strikes in Kabul, Paktia and Kandahar military targets,” according to The Times of India.

Al Jazeera cites Zaidi where he states that 297 Afghan Taliban have been killed and over 450 Afghan Taliban have been reported wounded, though Al Jazeera could not independently verify those numbers.

Additional Pakistani claims include the destruction of 27 Afghan military posts and nine captured Afghan personnel.

Afghanistan’s Claims

Afghanistan’s view regarding loss of life is very different:

Officials from the Afghan military allege that:

55 Pakistani soldiers have died

19 Pakistani military posts have been captured by the Afghan military

Several Pakistani soldiers were captured alive.

The Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid claimed that Afghan forces did capture a number of Pakistani soldiers while the office of the Prime Minister of Pakistan has denied that claim.

Afghanistan has also claimed that Pakistani air strikes have killed civilians, and Afghan officials have disputed the Pakistani claim that as many as 70 militants have been killed in strikes by stating that dozens of civilians have died.

The Humanitarian and Civilian Aspect

There is a further humanitarian aspect to consider.

In October 2023, Pakistan commenced a crackdown on Afghan migrants and expelled several hundred thousand Afghans from Pakistan. Many of those displaced, have congregated at border crossing points, such as Torkham.

As fighting ramped up, a refugee camp was selected and hit. The Afghan government reported civilians, including women and children, were hurt badly on their bodies.

The UN mission in Afghanistan had previously made the claim that as many as 13 civilians died as a result of Pakistani air strikes in the Nangarhar and Paktika provinces, during earlier operations.

Militant violence has been a problem for years in Pakistan; with Islamabad attributing a large degree of that violence to the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an organization that has ties to the more internationally known Taliban who are located in Afghanistan, where they operate independently of one another.

Islamabad has blamed Afghanistan for allowing the TTP to operate in Afghanistan; however, Kabul has denied that allegation.

How the world is reacting:

Global powers have weighed in on the issue, here are their pennies for thought: 

United States: U.S. President Donald Trump was asked whether he would intervene in the Taliban-Pakistan conflict; he stated, “I do understand Pakistan attacked or there is an attack going on with Afghanistan, that’s an easy one for me to solve if I have to solve that.”

The United Nations: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for an “immediate ceasefire,” showing deep concerns about the escalating violence on both sides, and called on both sides to protect civilians and settle differences diplomatically, according to Al Jazeera.

India: India’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal condemned the strikes by Pakistan on their territory and was especially appalled by the timing of these strikes during the holy month of Ramadan, according to Al Jazeera.