Airstrikes kill 10 civilians, including cricketers; Doha talks on hold as tensions escalate

The 48-hour temporary ceasefire between Pakistan and Afghanistan, which recently clashed along the border, has ended.

According to foreign media including AFP on the 8th, local time, Afghan authorities announced that the Pakistani military conducted airstrikes in Paktika Province, southeastern Afghanistan, the previous afternoon, killing at least 10 people. A senior Taliban official from Afghanistan told AFP, "Pakistan violated the ceasefire and bombed three locations in Paktika Province."

Local hospital officials reported that the airstrikes killed 10 civilians, including two children, and injured 12 others. The Afghanistan Cricket Board stated that three cricketers were among the deceased and declared its withdrawal from an upcoming cricket tournament involving Pakistan and two other countries next month.

Pakistan also acknowledged the airstrikes. A senior Pakistani military official stated, "We carried out a precision strike targeting Hafiz Gul Bahadur in the Afghan border region."

Hafiz Gul Bahadur is an armed group affiliated with the Pakistani Taliban (TTP). In northwestern Pakistan, near the Afghan border, extremist armed groups operate with goals including overthrowing the Pakistani government and establishing a state based on Sharia (Islamic law).

Earlier, the Pakistani military bombed Kabul, the Afghan capital, on the 9th under the pretext of targeting TTP leadership. Subsequently, the Afghan Taliban regime attacked Pakistani forces at six border locations on the 11th, leading to intense exchanges of fire.

The Pakistani military reported that 200 Taliban regime officials and armed forces were killed in the clashes on the 11th, along with 23 of its own soldiers. Afghan military authorities claimed nine Afghan deaths and 58 Pakistani fatalities.

Later, Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed to a 48-hour temporary ceasefire starting at 6 p.m. on the 15th. At the time, Afghanistan stated the ceasefire would continue if Pakistan refrained from attacks.

The two sides were reportedly set to hold talks in Doha, Qatar, to discuss extending the ceasefire, but Pakistan's resumption of airstrikes has effectively ended the truce for now.

Pakistan Resumes Airstrikes, Ceasefire with Afghanistan Ends