ISLAMABAD – Pakistan carried out cross-border aerial strikes against suspected militant hideouts in Afghanistan early Monday killing several people ac
Pakistan carried out cross-border aerial strikes against suspected militant hideouts in Afghanistan early Monday, killing several people, according to officials.
A Pakistani security official, speaking anonymously to VOA because he was not authorized to interact with the media, confirmed the pre-dawn strikes, saying they targeted commanders linked to the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP, a globally designated terrorist organization operating out of the neighboring country.
The military action apparently came in retaliation to Saturday’s high-profile TTP raid against a Pakistani military base in the volatile North Waziristan border district that killed seven soldiers, including two officers.
Afghanistan’s Taliban government confirmed in a statement that Pakistani planes had bombed multiple locations in its southeastern Paktika and Khost provinces but said the attack resulted in the deaths of eight civilians, including women and children. It was not possible to ascertain the identities of the slain people from independent sources.
“The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan strongly condemns these attacks and calls this reckless action a violation of Afghanistan’s territory,” said Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid.
