Taliban Retaliates to Pakistani Airstrikes; 15 Soldiers Killed, Border Clashes Escalate

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, OCt 12, 2025: In a sharp escalation of border tensions, Taliban forces retaliated to Pakistani airstrikes in Afghanistan’s Helmand province, killing 15 Pakistani soldiers and capturing three military outposts, officials said on Friday.

Mawlawi Mohammad Qasim Riaz, spokesperson for the Helmand provincial government, said the retaliatory operation took place near the Durand Line in Bahrampur district. Weapons and ammunition were also seized.

The Taliban offensive follows Pakistan’s recent airstrikes in Kabul and Paktika provinces. Heavy clashes have since erupted along the border in Helmand, Kandahar, Zabul, Paktika, Paktia, Khost, Nangarhar and Kunar.

The Taliban-run defence ministry accused Islamabad of violating Afghanistan’s sovereignty and warned of a “firm response” to any further incursions. Defence spokesman Enayat Khowarazm said operations had concluded at midnight, adding that Afghan forces were “ready to defend their territory.”

Pakistan has not confirmed responsibility for the airstrikes but urged Kabul to stop harbouring Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants. Islamabad has blamed the TTP—an ideological ally of the Afghan Taliban—for killing hundreds of its soldiers since 2021.

A Pakistani official in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa confirmed border clashes, saying Afghan forces had used artillery and drones, which were shot down.

The UN has previously reported that the TTP receives “substantial logistical and operational support” from Afghanistan’s de facto authorities—a claim Kabul denies.

Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif recently told Parliament that attempts to convince the Taliban to rein in the TTP had failed, warning that Islamabad “will no longer tolerate” such cross-border threats.