Pakistani shelling hits east as border fighting enters seventh day

Pakistani forces fired “dozens” of artillery rounds into eastern Afghanistan overnight, Taliban local officials said on Wednesday, as cross-border fighting between the two sides entered its seventh day.

In Kunar province, Pakistani border forces fired at least 101 artillery shells into several districts, according to Taliban officials. They said 82 rounds struck Sarkano district, 15 hit Dangam district and four landed in Shultan district.

Taliban authorities said one child was wounded in the attacks and that residents suffered “heavy damage” to property. Pakistani officials have not publicly commented on the reported shelling.

In neighboring Paktia province, Taliban officials said Pakistani forces also fired mortar rounds into parts of Samkani district overnight. Some shells struck residential homes but caused no casualties, according to the officials.

The reported attacks came as the standoff between the Taliban and Pakistan intensified along several stretches of the border.

Local sources told Amu TV that Taliban forces and Pakistani border guards also clashed overnight in border areas of Shamalzai district in Zabul province and in Shorabak district of Kandahar province. The extent of casualties or damage from those clashes was not immediately clear.

Neither Taliban officials nor Pakistani authorities have released details about those engagements.

The fighting is part of a broader escalation that began late last week on Feb. 26 and has since spread across multiple provinces. Over the past seven days, both sides have accused each other of inflicting heavy losses.

Pakistani warplanes have also carried out airstrikes in several parts of Afghanistan, including Bagram Air Base and Taliban military corps in Nangarhar and Kandahar provinces, according to Taliban officials and local sources. The Taliban confirmed the strike on Bagram but said it caused no casualties. They have not commented publicly on the reported attack on their corps headquarters in Kandahar.

Pakistan has said its strikes target bases linked to Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, a militant group Islamabad accuses of operating from Afghanistan’s territory. Taliban have rejected those remarks.