Pakistan accuses Afghan forces of killing civilian in 'unprovoked' border firing

By Aamir Latif

ISLAMABAD (AA) - Pakistan said Wednesday that its forces are responding "heavily" after Afghan forces allegedly resorted to "unprovoked" firing along their shared border, killing at least one civilian and injuring another five.

The latest artillery duel between the two neighbors was fought along Pakistan's South Waziristan tribal district, which borders Afghanistan's eastern provinces of Paktia and Paktika.

There was no immediate response from Kabul to Islamabad's claim.

The deputy commissioner of South Waziristan, on US social media company X, said that Afghan forces on Tuesday night fired "unprovoked" on civilian houses.

"One civilian killed, five injured by a mortar round, many shops damaged," he added.

Pakistani forces on the border, he said, "have and are responding effectively and heavily."

Relations between two neighbors have grown increasingly strained in recent years amid a series of militant attacks in Pakistan.

Pakistan accuses India and Afghanistan of patronizing militant groups involved in attacks on its soil

Both Kabul and New Delhi reject the accusation.

Separately, in a Wednesday statement, Pakistan’s army claimed to have killed nine "terrorists" in two separate security operations in its southwestern Balochistan province.

Amir Latif Arain