Pakistan Conducts Air Strikes in Afghanistan Targeting Militants
The operation, conducted early Sunday, February 22, 2026, focused on seven specific locations used by the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Islamic State Khorasan Province (IS-KP) in the Nangarhar and Paktika provinces. Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that these "intelligence-based selective operations" were a necessary response to a recent surge in suicide bombings within Pakistan, including a devastating attack on a Shia mosque in Islamabad earlier this month. Islamabad maintains that it has conclusive evidence that these attacks were planned and directed by handlers based on Afghan soil.
The Afghan interim government has strongly condemned the strikes, reporting that the aerial bombardment hit a religious school and residential homes rather than military targets. In Nangarhar’s Bihsud district alone, local sources reported that at least 17 people were killed, including 12 children and teenagers, as residents were seen using heavy machinery to search for victims under the rubble. Afghan government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid denounced the act as a "criminal" attempt by Pakistani generals to deflect from their own domestic security failures. He warned that such violations of Afghan sovereignty would have serious consequences, further straining the already fragile relationship between the two neighbors.
This latest escalation follows months of heightened tension and frequent border skirmishes that have claimed dozens of lives since late 2025. While Pakistan repeatedly urges the Taliban authorities to fulfill their obligations under the Doha Agreement by denying safe haven to armed groups, Kabul consistently denies providing any such patronage. Analysts fear that this direct military intervention marks a dangerous new phase in the regional conflict, potentially leading to a breakdown of diplomatic ties and increased instability across the South Asian borderlands.
