Afghanistan says its forces killed 41 fighters from Pakistan; Islamabad yet to respond

Afghanistan's Defence Ministry said its forces killed 41 fighters and captured 62 others during three days of clashes in a north-eastern district, describing those killed as insurgents who had crossed into the country from neighbouring Pakistan.

The statement, issued late on Tuesday, September 29, said the operations took place in the Kamdesh district of Nuristan province from Sunday to Tuesday. The ministry said the group included members of the Islamic State group, and that the fighters had entered Afghanistan "with the support" of Pakistan.

There was no immediate comment from Pakistan, whose Ministry of Information has rejected similar claims in the past. Neither account could be independently verified. Both sides have made competing claims in recent weeks about killing fighters on the other side.

Tensions along the border have been rising steadily. Cross-border fighting and Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan have added to long-standing disputes over militant activity in the frontier region.

The United Nations Mission in Afghanistan said last week that it had documented more than 1,100 civilian deaths and injuries in the country this year as a result of cross-border violence.

The Defence Ministry added in its statement: "The Ministry of Defence's security and defence forces will not permit anyone to undermine security in the country. If anyone attempts to do so again, they will face an even greater response."

Diplomatic friction has followed the fighting. Afghanistan's Foreign Ministry summoned Pakistan's chargé d'affaires on Tuesday and handed him a letter of protest over what it called "the crossing of disruptive armed elements" across the border, the ministry said.

Kabul accused Islamabad of harbouring recruitment and training camps for fighters it then sends across the border.

Pakistan has frequently accused Afghanistan's Taliban-led government of allowing the Pakistani Taliban, formally known as the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), to operate from Afghan territory and carry out attacks inside Pakistan. The TTP is separate from Afghanistan's Taliban but is allied with it. Kabul denies providing the group with a safe haven and has rejected Pakistan's accusations.

Afghanistan has made its own allegations. Its defence ministry recently accused Islamabad of training and sending across the border former members of Afghanistan's national military who served under the previous government, which was ousted when the Taliban seized power in 2021.

The two countries also disagree over the status of their frontier. Afghanistan does not recognise the boundary as an international border. The two share a boundary of more than 2,600 km, known as the Durand Line, which has been a source of friction for decades.

With independent verification of casualty figures difficult in the border region and diplomatic contacts limited, the dispute shows few signs of easing. United Nations officials and rights groups have repeatedly warned that civilians bear the heaviest cost of the exchanges.