{"id":2574306,"date":"2026-02-27T08:30:58","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T13:30:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pakistan-is-in-open-war-with-afghanistan-after-latest-strikes-defense-minister-says\/"},"modified":"2026-02-27T08:34:23","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T13:34:23","slug":"pakistan-is-in-open-war-with-afghanistan-after-latest-strikes-defense-minister-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pakistan-is-in-open-war-with-afghanistan-after-latest-strikes-defense-minister-says\/","title":{"rendered":"Pakistan is in &#8216;open war&#8217; with Afghanistan after latest strikes, defense minister says"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fpakistan-is-in-open-war-with-afghanistan-after-latest-strikes-defense-minister-says%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2574306&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Pakistan and Afghanistan have escalated their dispute into what pakistan\u2019s defense minister described as \u201copen war\u201d after <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-ukraine-crisis-could-spark-a-new-cold-war-or-a-nuclear-war\/\" title=\"The Ukraine Crisis Could Spark A New Cold War (Or a Nuclear War)\">cross-border strikes<\/a> and recent border clashes that have killed soldiers, civilians, and militants. Pakistan accuses Afghanistan\u2019s taliban government of harboring militants and \u201cexporting terrorism,\u201d while Afghanistan says its attacks are retaliatory for Pakistani airstrikes and aimed at Pakistani army posts across the border. Pakistan later carried out airstrikes in Kabul, Kandahar, and paktia in response, and both sides claim heavy losses that cannot be independently verified. A Qatar-brokered ceasefire briefly halted the fighting, but clashes resumed and peace talks in Istanbul earlier in the year failed to produce a formal agreement. International actors\u2014including Turkey, the U.N., Russia, and Iran\u2014called for restraint and a diplomatic resolution, while some offered mediation efforts. The conflict has strained border communities, with Afghan refugees relocated at the Torkham border and Pakistan conducting migrant crackdowns; UN figures note large-scale refugee movements and returns in recent years.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Pakistan is in &lsquo;open war&rsquo; with Afghanistan after latest strikes, defense minister says<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<p><strong>ISLAMABAD (AP) &mdash;<\/strong> Pakistan and Afghanistan traded attacks in a&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/afghanistan-pakistan-cricket-border-fighting-232bb8c59918af77a92b6d16e4adb52b\">dramatic escalation of tensions<\/a>&nbsp;between the countries that Pakistan&rsquo;s defense minister said Friday means they are now in &ldquo;open war.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Tensions&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/afghanistan-pakistan-airstrikes-children-killed-2d5239006f41b3ee94c361715d792c03\">have been high<\/a>&nbsp;between the neighbors for months, with&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/pakistan-afghanistan-border-6089d7b9cf33d2dcac365808ad3dad53\">border clashes in October<\/a>&nbsp;killing dozens of soldiers, civilians and suspected militants. Pakistan accuses Afghanistan&rsquo;s Taliban government of harboring militant groups that then stage attacks across the border and also of allying with its archrival India.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/4474161\/mike-huckabee-issues-warning-jerusalem-embassy-staff-leave\/\">Mike Huckabee issues warning to Jerusalem embassy staff to leave &#8216;TODAY&#8217;<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/4473683\/rubio-machado-trump-popular-venezuelans-poll\/\">Rubio, Machado, and Trump ranked as three most popular figures among Venezuelans: Poll<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/4473453\/iran-us-silent-negotiations-no-resolution\/\">Iran and US silent as negotiations in Geneva conclude without resolution<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>A&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/pakistan-afghanistan-talks-turkey-8839bbbe2b0c737c0c79ca7e14b36b1d\">Qatari-mediated ceasefire<\/a>&nbsp;ended the fighting, although the two sides still occasionally trade fire. Several rounds of peace talks in Istanbul in November failed to produce a formal agreement.<\/p>\n<p>Late Thursday, Afghanistan launched a cross-border attack on Pakistan, saying it was in retaliation for deadly&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/pakistan-afghanistan-militants-strikes-border-b849ad97b462de8067d1b7f20ffd9f9e\">Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan border areas<\/a>&nbsp;Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>Pakistan then carried out airstrikes in Kabul and two other Afghan provinces early Friday.<\/p>\n<p>After the strikes Friday, Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif said in an X post that Pakistan had hoped for peace in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of NATO forces in 2021 and expected the Taliban, which seized power in the country, to focus on the welfare of the Afghan people and regional stability.<\/p>\n<p>Instead, he said that the Taliban had turned Afghanistan &ldquo;into a colony of India,&rdquo; with which Pakistan has periodically engaged in wars, clashes and skirmishes since gaining independence from British colonial rule in 1947. India has had improved ties with Afghanistan recently, offering to enhance bilateral trade, to the annoyance of Islamabad.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Our patience has now run out. Now it is open war between us,&rdquo; he said. There was no immediate reaction from Afghan officials.<\/p>\n<p>Afghan authorities in the eastern Nangarhar province said that fighting was ongoing in the Torkham border area Friday morning. The province&rsquo;s information directorate said that Pakistani mortar fire hit civilian areas in Torkham, including a refugee camp, which had been evacuated overnight. In response, Afghanistan was targeting Pakistani army posts across the border, it said.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-exporting-terrorism\">&lsquo;Exporting terrorism&rsquo;<\/h2>\n<p>Asif, the Pakistani defense minister, accused Afghanistan of &ldquo;exporting terrorism.&rdquo; Islamabad frequently levies the allegation at its western neighbor as&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/pakistan-afghanistan-attack-protest-49b34fa0755c15ee8b289e2945eb2f3e\">militant violence has surged in Pakistan<\/a>, accusing Afghanistan of supporting the Pakistani Taliban, or TTP, and outlawed Baloch separatist groups.<\/p>\n<p>Pakistan accuses the TTP &mdash; which is separate from but closely allied with Afghanistan&rsquo;s Taliban &mdash; of operating from inside Afghanistan. Both the group and Kabul deny that charge.<\/p>\n<p>Pakistan has also frequently accused neighboring India of backing the outlawed Baloch Liberation Army and the Pakistani Taliban, allegations New Delhi denies.<\/p>\n<p>Asif&rsquo;s comments came hours after Pakistan carried out airstrikes in Afghanistan&rsquo;s capital, Kabul, as well as in Kandahar in the south and Paktia province in the southeast, according to Pakistani officials and Afghanistan government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid. Pakistan said the strikes were in retaliation for the Afghan cross-border attacks.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-retaliatory-strikes\">Retaliatory strikes<\/h2>\n<p>Afghanistan, meanwhile, said that it launched its attack late Thursday also in retaliation &mdash; for deadly&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/pakistan-afghanistan-militants-strikes-border-b849ad97b462de8067d1b7f20ffd9f9e\">Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan border areas<\/a>&nbsp;Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>The governments have issued sharply differing casualty claims. Each said that it <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >inflicted heavy losses<\/a> of dozens of soldiers on the other, while putting its own casualty figures in the single digits. The claims couldn&rsquo;t be independently verified.<\/p>\n<p>Afghanistan also claimed it had captured an undisclosed number of Pakistani soldiers. Mosharraf Ali Zaidi, a spokesperson for Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, denied any soldiers had been captured.<\/p>\n<p>Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said Pakistan&rsquo;s anti-drone systems shot down several small drones over the northwestern cities of Abbottabad, Swabi, and Nowshera on Friday. He said the drones appeared to be part of a failed attack by the Pakistani Taliban, and that there were no casualties. Tarar claimed the drone attacks &ldquo;once again exposed direct linkages between the Afghan Taliban regime and terrorism in Pakistan.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-international-calls-for-restraint\">International calls for restraint<\/h2>\n<p>Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan held separate phone calls with his Pakistani, Afghan, Qatari and Saudi counterparts on Friday to discuss the conflict, a Turkish official said, without providing details on the talks. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in line with government policy.<\/p>\n<p>In October, Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia had facilitated talks between the sides.<\/p>\n<p>U.N. Secretary-General Ant&oacute;nio Guterres urged both sides to protect civilians as required under international law and &ldquo;to continue to seek to resolve any differences through diplomacy,&rdquo; U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.<\/p>\n<p>Russia called for an immediate halt to the fighting and for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict, Russian diplomat Zamir Kabulov told news agency Ria Novosti. Kabulov, who is President Vladimir Putin&rsquo;s special envoy for Afghanistan, said that Moscow would consider mediating between the two countries if asked, according to Ria Novosti.<\/p>\n<p>Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi urged Pakistan and Afghanistan to resolve their differences through dialogue during the holy month of Ramadan. He also said that Tehran was ready to assist in facilitating dialogue.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-refugees-at-the-border\">Refugees at the border<\/h2>\n<p>Pakistani authorities said that dozens of&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/pakistan-resumes-forced-afghan-refugees-deportations-unhcr-8485b2a839b4b292ad4d0a62e3f1b541\">Afghan refugees in the Torkham border<\/a>&nbsp;area had been relocated to safer places.<\/p>\n<p>Pakistan&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/pakistan-illegal-immigrants-afghans-crackdown-deadline-bb00216d688b1c70d1438d5c28f4031a\">launched a sweeping crackdown<\/a>&nbsp;in October 2023 to expel migrants without documents, urging those in the country to leave of their own accord to avoid arrest and forcibly expelling others. Iran also began a crackdown on migrants at around the same time.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/4474161\/mike-huckabee-issues-warning-jerusalem-embassy-staff-leave\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/4474161\/mike-huckabee-issues-warning-jerusalem-embassy-staff-leave\/\">MIKE HUCKABEE ISSUES WARNING TO JERUSALEM EMBASSY STAFF TO LEAVE<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Since then, millions have crossed the border into Afghanistan, including&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/afghanistan-pakistan-refugee-expulsion-taliban-torkham-crackdown-4aa29a801b471e8864bee279ca1b278a\">people who were born in Pakistan<\/a>&nbsp;decades ago and had built lives and created businesses there.<\/p>\n<p>Last year alone, 2.9 million people&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/afghanistan-refugees-reintegration-pakistan-iran-taliban-106407bce2cb72f1111c134a4f862e07\">returned to Afghanistan<\/a>, the U.N. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/critics-slam-biden-admin-for-reopening-migrant-facility-for-children\/\" title=\"Critics slam Biden admin. for reopening migrant facility for children\">refugee agency<\/a> has said, with nearly 80,000 having returned so far this year.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Open war: Pakistan-Afghanistan clash after strikes<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2634,"featured_media":2574307,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AP26058270694882.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[74724,74723,74725,74722,74726],"class_list":["post-2574306","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-defense-minister-2","tag-military-conflict-2","tag-open-war","tag-pakistan-afghanistan-relations","tag-regional-security-2"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AP26058270694882.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2574306","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2634"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2574306"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2574306\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2574314,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2574306\/revisions\/2574314"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2574307"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2574306"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2574306"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2574306"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}