Pakistan’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting on Wednesday dismissed Afghanistan’s defence ministry account of fighting at the Angoor Adda border, calling it a “fabrication of lies,” after Afghan security forces opened fire on Pakistani Army border posts and residential areas in Lower South Waziristan on Tuesday.
Officials said the firing came from posts inside Afghan territory, used small and heavy weapons, and broke border protocols. One local was killed and five people were injured. Pakistan’s security forces answered at once.
What each side says happened
Afghanistan’s defence ministry claimed Pakistani military personnel, “without any provocation or justification,” used drones against the Angoor Adda bazaar and the commissioner’s office in Paktika province. It said Afghan forces then struck a nearby Pakistani military base and outposts, presenting Pakistan as the aggressor.
The information ministry’s fact-checking account on X rejected that narrative. It said Afghan forces started unprovoked fire and mortar shelling against unarmed civilians on the Pakistani side, and that the pattern matched “instructions of their proxy masters India.” The ministry said Pakistan’s response was immediate and effective, causing heavy casualties and material losses on the Afghan side, including the destruction of seven posts. It added that statements from Taliban regime spokespersons “carry no value.”
Sources said Pakistani forces hit multiple Afghan Taliban border posts, mortar positions and defensive bunkers with small and heavy arms, including artillery. The intensity of the reply, they said, forced Afghan Taliban fighters to leave their posts and flee.
Political reaction in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Earlier on Wednesday, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi condemned the firing from the Afghan side. He said Pakistan would “never tolerate” attacks on its people or violations of its sovereignty, and that the province had “sacrificed thousands of lives in the fight against terrorism.” He warned that any aggression would be met with resolve and that the armed forces had the nation’s full backing to defend every inch of soil.
Angoor Adda is among the most important and sensitive crossings on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. It is a key trade route and a main point of public movement between the two countries. Border violations from the Afghan side have become frequent as ties have stayed strained over counterterrorism. Islamabad has repeatedly urged the Taliban administration in Kabul to dismantle terrorist sanctuaries on Afghan soil, especially those linked to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP); officials say those appeals have gone unanswered.
Timeline: what has happened so far
- 26 February: Pakistan launched Operation Ghazab lil Haq after unprovoked cross-border firing by Afghan Taliban forces, according to Information Minister Attaullah Tarar.
- 21 September: After major terrorist attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan carried out “calibrated” airstrikes on terrorist hideouts in the border region; the government said more than 28 terrorists were killed.
- 23–26 September: Pakistan shot down eight drones that entered airspace near Torkham and Kohat, later struck 10 locations in Afghanistan, and delivered a demarche over the 23 September airspace violation.
- 1 October: Pakistan again carried out “well-planned and calibrated” airstrikes against terrorist hideouts in Afghanistan; the information ministry said “multiple terrorists” were killed.
- Mid-October: Security forces responded to unprovoked firing in Upper Kurram; sources said the army hit the Afghan Taliban’s Topsar post and Shipola base camp with artillery, reportedly destroying the latter, and that several Afghan Taliban personnel were killed near Ghuzgarhi.
- Tuesday–Wednesday (this week): Unprovoked firing at Angoor Adda killed one local and injured five; Islamabad rejected Kabul’s competing account as fabricated lies.
Talks with Afghanistan, the Foreign Office has said, cannot be unconditional, though Islamabad has also said it would welcome sincere efforts by friendly countries to help settle the dispute.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Angoor Adda border par Afghan forces ne Pakistani posts aur gharoon par goli chalaayi. Ek shehri shaheed hua, paanch zakhmi hue. Afghanistan ne kaha Pakistan ne pehle drone chalaye; Pakistan ne is baat ko jhoot qaraar diya. Mamooli logon ke liye yeh matlab hai ke yeh crossing trade aur aamad-o-raft ke liye ahem hai, aur tanav se border par harkat mushkil ho sakti hai.
