By Micah Jonah, March 13, 2026
Airstrikes carried out by Pakistan have reportedly killed, injured civilians in Kabul and other parts of Afghanistan, according to officials from the ruling Taliban and the United Nations.
The overnight strikes targeted a fuel depot belonging to Kam Air near the airport in Kandahar, Taliban authorities said. The facility reportedly supplies fuel to civilian airlines and United Nations aircraft.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan said the airstrikes in Kabul’s Pul-e-Charkhi area killed at least four civilians, injured 14 others, including women and children.
In eastern Nangarhar Province, Afghan officials said a mortar shell believed to have been fired from Pakistan struck a residential house in the Momandara district, killing a woman and a child.
Pakistan’s Information Minister, Attaullah Tarar defended the military action, saying the strikes were part of an operation called “Ghazb lil Haq,” which he said targeted militant camps and terrorist infrastructure in Kabul, Paktia and Kandahar. He denied that civilian infrastructure or populations were intentionally targeted.
Taliban spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid condemned the attacks, warned that the strikes would not go unanswered.
Afghanistan’s defence authorities later said they responded with drone strikes on a Pakistani military base in Kohat, causing significant damage. Pakistani officials reported that falling drone debris injured two people.
The conflict between the two neighbours has intensified in recent weeks after earlier Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan triggered retaliatory attacks. The tensions come despite recent mediation efforts by Xi Jinping aimed at halting the fighting.
The United Nations says at least 75 civilians have been killed and nearly 200 wounded since the clashes escalated in late February, while the Taliban government claims more than 110 civilians have died. Pakistan has disputed those figures, maintaining that its operations are directed solely at militant targets.
