Attack Comes Hours After Pak Warning: Pakistan’s Airstrike on Afghanistan Explained
Pakistan’s airstrike on Afghanistan has intensified tensions in the region. On Thursday, the Pakistani Air Force launched a cross-border strike in Kabul, targeting Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) camps. The timing of this attack, coinciding with the Taliban Foreign Minister’s maiden visit to India, has sparked regional concern about Islamabad’s motives amid India’s expanding Afghan outreach.
On Thursday evening, Pakistan carried out airstrikes in Kabul against Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan soldiers (TTP) during heightened tensions in Afghanistan. The airstrikes occurred during the Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi’s first visit to India, raising concerns about what Pakistan was doing and the timing of the attacks.
Airstrikes Target TTP Leader Noor Wali Mehsud
Pakistan’s airstrikes were reportedly intended to kill TTP leader Noor Wali Mehsud, who has led the TTP since 2018. Local sources of media confirmed the airstrikes created explosions in the Shahid Abdul Haq Square that were felt enough to shake sections of Kabul. The airstrikes did not directly acknowledge or name Mehsud, but Pakistan authorities claimed the attacks killed 30 militants who were extremists responsible for the deadly October 7 attack on a Pakistani military convoy.
The attack killed other fatalities, including 11 Pakistani troops, with two being high-ranking officers, near the Afghanistan border. Shortly after the air raids, Mehsud himself released audio tape documents denying he had been killed. However, Pakistani media previously reported he had been killed. This is contrary to Mehsud, who came out contradicting the reports that he had been attacked or killed.
Mehsud’s Ascendance Intensifies Pakistan’s Local Security Dilemma
Mehsud believes Pakistan, by cooperating with the U.S. after 9/11, betrayed the principles of Islamism. Attacks by the TTP on Pakistani military targets have intensified under Mehsud. The latest incident occurred on October 8, when the TTP detonated an improvised explosive device and killed three Pakistani soldiers.
Zalmay Khalilzad, former U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan, called these attacks “a huge escalation” in Pakistan. He pointed to great dangers and called for conversations between Pakistan and the Taliban. Khalilzad also noted that Taliban supporters recently killed various ISIS leaders in Pakistan but indicated that Islamabad has been supportive of anti-Afghan and Baloch rebels associated with ISIS.
Pakistan’s Airstrike on Afghanistan: Warning Issued Before Kabul Attacks
The air raids came after a warning of a strong reaction from Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif the day before the attacks. In a parliamentary address, he claimed that Pakistan’s patience had “run out” for militant incursions from the Afghan side of the border. “Enough is enough,” he said, adding that Islamabad could no longer tolerate terrorism within Pakistan that originates from Afghanistan.
On Friday, Asif began by admitting Pakistan had been blamed for giving rise to terrorism and had now begun to pay for it. “Our soldiers are being killed every day,” he stated. “We are paying for sixty years of hosting Afghan refugees in blood.” He also indicated that millions of Afghan refugees should be returned to break the “cycle of terror and murder.”
Kabul Strikes Detract from Taliban Minister’s India Visit
The strikes occurred at the same time as Taliban Foreign Minister Muttaqi’s sixth-day official visit to India. During the official visit, he will meet with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval in New Delhi. These meetings will be the highest-level India-Taliban interactions since the group took power in August 2021.
Experts believe that Pakistan’s airstrikes were purposefully meant to send a signal to Kabul and New Delhi. The Taliban condemned the Pahalgam attack in India last week, providing a significant calming of diplomatic relations that unnerved Islamabad. As India advances its relationship with Afghanistan via aid and diplomacy, Pakistan finds itself increasingly isolated in the region.
Pakistan’s Strategy is a Sign of Growing Desperation
Ultimately, then, Pakistan’s airstrikes seem less an exercise of power and more a show of strategic panic. As India and Afghanistan move toward a closer alignment, it would appear that Pakistan risks growing more isolated in a region that is rapidly shifting its alliances.
For a deeper understanding of Pakistan-Afghanistan relations and recent regional developments, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-58894098
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