Gunfire and explosions echoed across central Kabul on Sunday as Afghan forces fired anti-aircraft weapons at what authorities said were Pakistani military aircraft entering Afghan airspace, according to Hurriyet Daily News. The incident marks a sharp escalation in weeks of growing cross border conflict between the neighboring countries.
A spokesman for the Afghan Taliban government, Zabihullah Mujahid, said Afghan air defenses were responding to a “fresh incursion” over the capital. Residents reported hearing successive blasts and heavy gunfire overhead, fueling fear in a city already strained by months of tension.
The clashes follow an Afghan offensive launched along the frontier on Feb. 26, which Kabul said was retaliation for earlier Pakistani air strikes that killed civilians. Pakistan responded with attacks across the border and from the air. Islamabad has acknowledged bombing Afghan cities including Kabul and Kandahar on Feb. 27, saying the strikes targeted militants. Afghan officials insist civilians were hit.
In southern Kandahar, construction workers said two air strikes struck their site, killing three people. Afghan authorities say at least 30 civilians have died in Pakistan’s attacks across eastern provinces including Khost, Kunar, and Paktika since Feb. 26.
Tension has spread beyond the battlefield. On the highway between Kabul and the border, witnesses reported hearing jets and explosions on Feb. 28. Afghan forces claimed they shot down a Pakistani fighter jet and captured its pilot, a claim Pakistan dismissed as “totally untrue.”
Near the frontier, families have fled bombardment. “The shelling started, and everyone ran children, women, all of us,” said Mohammad Rasool, 63, who escaped to another district. “Some had no shoes. Some left without veils.”
Diplomatic efforts to halt the fighting have so far failed. Saudi Arabia and Qatar are trying to mediate, while China has urged restraint. The United States said it supports Pakistan’s right to defend itself against attacks blamed on the militant Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, which Islamabad says operates from Afghan soil, a charge Kabul denies.
Analysts note this week’s escalation is significant: for the first time, Pakistan’s strikes have directly targeted Afghan government sites rather than only militant positions. With diplomacy stalled and civilian casualties rising, fears are growing that the long tense Pakistan Afghanistan border could slide toward open war.
