Pakistan airstrikes in Afghanistan kill 28 militants according to Islamabad, 3 civilians according to Kabul

Pakistani fighter jets launched airstrikes in eastern Afghanistan on September 21, 2026, shattering three months of relative calm. Islamabad claims the strikes killed 28 militants at suicide bomber training sites, retaliating for a September 18 militant attack in Kohat that killed 21 people. However, the Afghan Taliban and the United Nations confirmed that the strikes hit residential homes, killing three civilians. Kabul has formally protested the violation of its sovereignty, while denying that it shelters anti-Pakistan insurgents.

Pakistani airstrikes in Afghanistan

• ▪The September 21, 2026 airstrikes marked the first Pakistani military strikes on Afghan territory since June 2026.
• ▪Pakistani fighter jets conducted airstrikes on September 21, 2026, targeting sites in the eastern Afghan provinces of Kunar and Paktika.
• ▪Pakistan's Ministry of Information and Broadcasting stated that the September 21, 2026 Pakistani airstrikes targeted and destroyed three militant sites, including a suicide bomber training station

Militant attacks triggering retaliation

• ▪Pakistan's Information Ministry warned on September 19, 2026, that it could target militants inside Afghanistan, accusing the Afghan Taliban of sheltering the perpetrators of the September 18, 2026 attack on a police facility in Kohat
• ▪A suicide bombing and subsequent 20-hour gunbattle on September 18, 2026, at a police compound in Kohat, Pakistan, killed at least 21 people, mostly police officers.
• ▪The militant group Shura Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen, led by warlord Hafiz Gul Bahadur, claimed responsibility for the September 18, 2026 attack on a police facility in Kohat
• ▪An exchange of fire on September 20, 2026, in the Hangu district of Pakistan killed six Pakistani security personnel and eight militants.

Conflicting casualty reports

• ▪The Afghan Taliban government reported that the September 21, 2026 Pakistani airstrikes killed three civilians and wounded four others.
• ▪Pakistan's Information Ministry claimed that the September 21, 2026 Pakistani airstrikes killed 28 militants and multiple suicide bombers

Civilian deaths confirmed

• ▪Afghan deputy government spokesperson Hamdullah Fitrat stated that the Pakistani strike in Kunar province's Nurgal district hit a local resident's home, killing three family members
• ▪The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan documented over 1,100 civilian deaths and injuries from cross-border violence in Afghanistan during 2026.
• ▪The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan confirmed that at least three civilians—a man, a woman, and a girl—were killed in the September 21, 2026 Pakistani airstrikes in Kunar province

Taliban diplomatic protest

• ▪Afghanistan's Foreign Ministry summoned Pakistan's chargé d'affaires in Kabul to lodge a formal protest against the September 21, 2026 Pakistani airstrikes
• ▪The Afghan Taliban government categorically rejected Pakistan's allegations that recent security incidents in Pakistan originated from Afghan soil.
• ▪Afghan government spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid condemned the September 21, 2026 Pakistani airstrikes as a violation of sovereignty and warned that Afghanistan would respond

Pakistan-Afghanistan border tensions

• ▪A Pakistani airstrike on Kabul in March 2026 killed more than 400 people, which the Afghan Taliban claimed targeted a drug rehab center and Pakistan claimed targeted military infrastructure.
• ▪In February 2026, Pakistan declared it was in an 'open war' with Afghanistan following a surge in militant attacks and subsequent retaliatory cross-border fighting.
• ▪Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have been severely strained since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, leading to frequent cross-border clashes.

Debatable claims

• ▪Pakistan is justified in conducting airstrikes inside Afghanistan
• ▪The Afghan Taliban is responsible for militant attacks inside Pakistan