Afghanistan Warns Of 'Other Options' If Peace Efforts With Pakistan Fail Amid Escalating Border Tensions
58 Pakistani soldiers killed, 25 army posts captured by Afghanistan in 'Retaliatory' attacks: Taliban Spokesperson
Published : October 12, 2025 at 7:26 AM IST
|Updated : October 12, 2025 at 5:01 PM IST
New Delhi: Afghanistan wants a peaceful resolution of its conflict with Pakistan, but if the efforts don't succeed, it has other means, Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi said on Sunday.
Muttaqi's comments at a media briefing at the Afghan embassy came amid escalating tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Pakistan carried out air strikes in Kabul on Thursday, and it followed clashes between the two sides.
Muttaqi said the situation is under control now. "We want a peaceful resolution of the situation, but if the peace efforts don't succeed, we have other options," the Afghan foreign minister said.
"We have good relations with the people of Pakistan and the government but some elements in that country are trying to create problems," he said.
Earlier today, the Taliban-run Afghan government on Sunday said its forces had killed 58 Pakistani soldiers in overnight border operations, in response to what it called repeated violations of its territory and airspace.
The Taliban government’s chief spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, as per Associated Press, said Afghan forces have captured 25 Pakistani army posts, 58 soldiers have been killed, and 30 others wounded, but there was no immediate confirmation from Islamabad.
“The situation on all official borders and de facto lines of Afghanistan is under complete control, and illegal activities have been largely prevented,” Mujahid told a press conference in Kabul on Sunday. There was no immediate confirmation from Pakistan about casualties.
Afghan security forces attacked Pakistani border posts late Saturday after the Taliban, earlier this week, accused Pakistan of bombing Kabul and a market in the country’s east. Pakistan did not claim responsibility for the assault.
Taliban forces launched armed reprisals against Pakistani soldiers along the shared border, accusing Islamabad of carrying out air strikes on its soil, senior officials from several provinces said.
The two countries share a 2,611-kilometre border known as the Durand Line, but Afghanistan has never recognised it. The fighting between the two countries came as Afghan foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi was visiting India.
Pakistan responds
Pakistan responded to what it called "unprovoked" attacks by Afghan forces in border areas, destroying several Afghan border posts, training camps, and terrorist hideouts, PTI reported on Sunday, quoting security sources.
There was no official statement or comments from the Pakistan Army on the development. However, security sources confirmed that Pakistani forces deployed at the international border “targeted several Afghan border posts”, adding that there were reports of significant damage inflicted on multiple Afghan posts and militant formations.
They said “several Afghan soldiers were killed” and militant formations were forced to retreat due to the “effective and intense retaliation by Pakistani forces”. Artillery, tanks, light and heavy weapons were used in the retaliatory action, along with air resources and drones, said the sources.
They added that Afghan posts failed to provide covering fire to the militants, and there are reports of “heavy losses” among Afghan border posts and militants.
“Kharijites and Daesh hideouts inside Afghanistan, operating under the patronage of the interim Afghan government, are being effectively targeted...The headquarters of Afghan forces, which have been sheltering Daesh and Fitna al-Khawarij, are also being targeted,” they said.
Taliban Blames Pakistan
On Thursday, two explosions were heard in the Afghan capital and another in the southeast of the country. The following day, the Taliban-run defence ministry blamed the attacks on Pakistan, accusing its neighbour of violating its sovereignty.
Early Sunday, the Defence Ministry confirmed the attacks, saying that its forces had conducted “retaliatory and successful operations”.
"In retaliation for air strikes carried out by the Pakistani army on Kabul," Taliban forces are engaged "in heavy clashes against Pakistani security forces in various areas" along the border, the Afghan military said in a statement. Later, ministry spokesman Enayat Khowarazm told AFP the "successful" operations had ended at midnight.
But he warned: "If the opposing side violates Afghanistan's territory again, our armed forces are ready to defend their territory and will respond firmly." Islamabad did not confirm that it was behind Thursday's attacks, but called on Kabul "to stop harbouring the Pakistani Taliban (TTP) on its soil."
Afghan forces targeted Pakistani posts at Angoor Adda, Bajaur, Kurram, Dir, and Chitral in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Baramcha in Balochistan.
Pakistan's Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi called the Taliban attacks on border posts "unprovoked", accusing them of firing at civilians. “Firing by Afghan forces on the civilian population is a blatant violation of international laws. Pakistan’s brave forces have given a prompt and effective response that no provocation will be tolerated,” he said.
He said Pakistan’s forces are alert, and Afghanistan is being answered with "stones for bricks".
The situation deteriorated between the two neighbours following repeated terrorist attacks by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), allegedly using the Afghan soil, including one in the restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Orakzai district last week, which claimed the lives of 11 military personnel, including a Lt Colonel and a Major.
'Fitna al-Khawarij'
The Pakistan government last year notified the banned TTP as “Fitna al-Khawarij”, a reference to a group in earlier Islamic history which was involved in violence.
In a series of posts on social media, state-run PTV News shared videos of firing on the Afghan posts, some of which were in flames, and in one video, Afghan soldiers surrendering to Pakistani forces in Kurram.
The state broadcaster issued the following statement quoting security sources: “Unprovoked firing from the Afghan side at Pak-Afghan border, a strong, intense response from Pakistan Army." It said Pakistan was currently “targeting terrorist camps and hideouts of khawarij, ISIS located near the Pak-Afghan border inside Afghanistan with great precision. Afghan forces have retreated from several areas”.
Uptick in violence
In recent months, TTP militants have intensified their campaign of violence against Pakistani security forces in the mountainous areas bordering Afghanistan. Islamabad accuses Afghanistan of failing to expel militants who use Afghan territory to launch attacks on Pakistan, an accusation denied by authorities in Kabul.
The TTP and its affiliates are behind most of the violence -- largely directed at security forces. Earlier this year, a UN report said the TTP "receive substantial logistical and operational support from the de facto authorities", referring to the Taliban government in Kabul.
Pakistani Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif told parliament on Thursday that several efforts to convince the Afghan Taliban to stop backing the TTP had failed. "We will not tolerate this any longer," Asif said. "United, we must respond to those facilitating them, whether the hideouts are on our soil or Afghan soil."
Earlier Saturday, the TTP claimed responsibility for deadly attacks in several districts in northwest Pakistan that killed 20 security officials and three civilians. (With agency inputs)
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