Fresh Pakistan-Afghanistan Border Clashes Leave 21 Dead, Including Civilians and Soldiers

Pakistan says Taliban fighters killed; Kabul accuses Islamabad of “invasion”

October 15, 2025

Pakistan-Afghanistan Border Erupts Again: 21 Killed in Fresh Crossfire

Afghan civilians among casualties as mortar fire hits Spin Boldak region

At least 15 Afghan civilians and six Pakistani paramilitary troops were killed in renewed cross-border clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan that erupted late Tuesday, officials and media reports said on Wednesday.

According to Reuters, six Pakistani paramilitary soldiers were killed during an exchange of fire with militants near the Afghan border. Afghan officials, quoted by AFP, reported that 15 civilians lost their lives and dozens were injured as violence flared along the volatile frontier.

Pakistan’s military said it retaliated after “unprovoked” cross-border firing by Afghan forces and local militants on Tuesday night in the northwestern Kurram region. “Pakistan responded with full force,” state-run Pakistan Television reported, citing security officials.

The channel added that several Taliban fighters were killed, their forward posts destroyed, and a tank damaged in the operation.

An important commander of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the local offshoot of the Afghan Taliban, was also reportedly killed in the retaliatory action, according to PTV.
Afghanistan, however, accused Pakistan of initiating the hostilities. Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid claimed Afghan forces had killed “many invading soldiers” and seized weapons, tanks, and border posts during the confrontation.

The latest clashes come just days after both nations exchanged strikes over the weekend, following air raids in Kabul on October 7 that Afghanistan blamed on Pakistan. In retaliation, Afghan forces reportedly targeted Pakistani military positions along their shared border on October 12.

While Afghan authorities claimed that their retaliatory strikes killed 58 Pakistani soldiers, Islamabad said the toll was 23, asserting that over 200 Taliban fighters were eliminated in counterfire. Border crossings between the two countries were shut on Sunday amid escalating tensions.

The confrontation eased only after diplomatic interventions by Qatar and Saudi Arabia, sources said.

Ali Mohammad Haqmal, spokesperson for the local information department in Afghanistan’s Spin Boldak region, told AFP that at least 15 civilians were killed by mortar fire in the latest round of violence. The toll was confirmed by Abdul Jan Barak, an official at the Spin Boldak district hospital, who said more than 80 women and children were among the injured.

The border flare-up highlights worsening relations between Islamabad and Kabul, despite repeated calls for restraint from regional and international mediators.

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