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<\/p>\nTensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan have flared in recent days with the exchange of deadly gunfire between the neighbors that has stoked fears of a wider conflict.<\/p>\n
The fighting followed strikes in the Afghan capital Kabul and the border province of Paktika last Thursday that the Taliban blamed on Pakistan, though Islamabad has not officially acknowledged the attacks.<\/p>\n
The latest flare-up coincided with a historic trip by Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi to Pakistan\u2019s rival India, triggering concern in Islamabad.<\/p>\n
Experts warn these latest attacks could signal a new era of instability for the neighbors, who have maintained steady and strategic relations for years despite frequent skirmishes along their disputed border.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s what we know about the violence, which prompted calls to de-escalate from China, Russia, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and an offer from US President Donald Trump to broker peace.<\/p>\n
Sharpest escalation in years<\/p>\n
The Taliban accused Pakistan of conducting an \u201cunprecedented, violent and reprehensible\u201d attack on targets in Kabul and Patika on Thursday night.<\/p>\n
Islamabad has not officially claimed responsibility for the attacks. But during a press briefing Friday, Lt. Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, a Pakistani military official, said there is \u201cevidence\u201d that \u201cAfghanistan is being used as a base of operations for carrying out terrorism in Pakistan.\u201d<\/p>\n
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People watch a televised press briefing by Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, Director General of the Inter-Services Public Relations wing of the Pakistan Armed Forces, in Karachi, Pakistan on October 10, 2025. – Akhtar Soomro\/Reuters<\/p>\n
Pakistan has long accused Kabul of harboring the militant group the Pakistani Taliban (known as the TTP), which Afghanistan\u2019s Taliban denies. Pakistan has faced a surge in Islamist violence since the Taliban swept Kabul in 2021, emboldening militant groups.<\/p>\n
On Saturday night, the Taliban launched what it said were retaliatory attacks against Pakistani forces in various areas near the Kunar and Nangarhar border provinces.<\/p>\n
Pakistan responded to the attack, which it called \u201cunprovoked,\u201d by conducting strikes and physical raids against Taliban camps and posts and terrorist training facilities and support networks in Afghanistan, according to a statement by the military.<\/p>\n
The Taliban said it had halted its military operation around midnight following mediation from Qatar and Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n
Both countries claimed higher death tolls than their neighbor acknowledged.<\/p>\n
Pakistan claimed to have killed more than 200 Taliban and militants, a figure far beyond the Taliban\u2019s nine claimed losses.<\/p>\n
The Taliban, meanwhile, said it killed 58 Pakistani soldiers \u2013 more than double Pakistan\u2019s 23 claimed losses \u2013 according to Mujahid.<\/p>\n
CNN has not independently verified these death tolls.<\/p>\n
Long and complicated history<\/p>\n
Pakistan and Afghanistan have a long and complicated history and have engaged in frequent clashes along their mountainous, 1,600-mile disputed border, known as the \u201cDurand Line.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pakistan was one of the main backers of the Taliban during its insurgency against the Afghan government in the early 2000s.<\/p>\n
The two countries are also big trading partners and share strong people-to-people ties. Pakistan has hosted millions of Afghan refugees over decades of war, though has moved to expel many of them in recent years, citing the risk of terrorism.<\/p>\n
But Afghan-Pakistan relations have soured amid an uptick in militant violence against Pakistan.<\/p>\n
The TTP has re-emerged as one of the country\u2019s biggest national security threats, conducting 600 attacks against Pakistani forces in the past year, according to a recent report<\/a> by the independent nonprofit Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED).<\/p>\n Following Saturday\u2019s attacks, the Pakistan military said while Pakistan prefers diplomacy, it will \u201cnot tolerate the treacherous use of Afghan soil for terrorism against Pakistan.\u201d<\/p>\n Pakistan said on Sunday it had closed its two main border crossings with Afghanistan.<\/p>\n The India factor<\/p>\n Pakistan\u2019s military noted that the \u201cserious provocation\u201d occurred during a recent visit by the Taliban\u2019s foreign minister to India, Pakistan\u2019s main regional rival. The two most recently fought a brief conflict<\/a> earlier this year.<\/p>\n The Taliban and India made no secret of their closer ties on Friday when New Delhi said it would reopen an embassy in Kabul, calling Muttaqi\u2019s visit \u201can important step in advancing our ties and affirming the enduring friendship\u201d between the two countries.<\/p>\n (L to R) Anand Prakash, Joint Secretary of the Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran (PAI) Division at the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Afghanistan’s Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi and Indian entrepreneur Vikramjit Singh Sahney participate in a roundtable in New Delhi, India on Monday. – Anushree Fadnavis\/Reuters<\/p>\n Islamabad and New Delhi have \u201ccompeted bloodily for influence in Afghanistan for decades,\u201d Antoine Levesques, Senior Fellow for South and Central Asian Defense, Strategy and Diplomacy at the International Institute for Strategic Studies told CNN.<\/p>\n Levesques said the Taliban\u2019s visit to India had been a \u201cstep-change\u201d for India-Taliban ties, \u201craising the feeling of insecurity for Pakistan on both its eastern and western borders.\u201d<\/p>\n Pakistan has long viewed good relations with Afghanistan as key to counterbalancing India, which is why it continued to support the Taliban covertly when it was not in power despite outwardly supporting the US and NATO\u2019s War on Terror, said Pearl Pandya, Senior Analyst, South Asia for ACLED.<\/p>\n \u201cHowever, this calculation does not appear to have paid out,\u201d Pandya said.<\/p>\n How have other countries reacted?<\/p>\n Qatar, Saudi Arabia, China and Russia all called for de-escalation.<\/p>\n Qatar expressed \u201cconcern\u201d over \u201cthe potential repercussions for the security and stability of the region\u201d in a statement to X.<\/a> Saudi Arabia, which recently signed a defense pact<\/a> with Pakistan, also called for \u201crestraint and dialogue.\u201d<\/p>\n China\u2019s Foreign Ministry said Monday it \u201csincerely hopes both countries will focus on the bigger picture \u2026 and resolve their concerns through dialogue and consultation.\u201d Russia also called for a resolution \u201cthrough diplomatic means.\u201d<\/p>\n Pandya said she expected China, \u201cwhich has recently taken on a mediating role between Pakistan and Afghanistan and has economic interests in both countries, to maintain a close eye on the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n The fighting also drew the attention of Trump, who offered to broker peace.<\/p>\n \u201cI hear there\u2019s a war now going on between Pakistan and Afghanistan,\u201d Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he flew to Israel on Sunday to mark the deal to end the war in Gaza.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m good at solving wars, I\u2019m good at making peace,\u201d Trump said.<\/p>\n What will this mean for relations moving forward?<\/p>\n While the violence has eased for now, with both countries signaling that they wish to de-escalate, the recent attacks could usher in a new era of instability for the neighbors.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the past, cyclical bouts of armed tensions typically have receded once both sides have made their point,\u201d Levesques said, adding that Pakistan\u2019s leadership views its country as a \u201cstability provider for the region.\u201d<\/p>\n Though Islamabad has not claimed direct responsibility for the airstrikes in Kabul, \u201csuch an attack would cross a red line in their relations,\u201d Pandya said.<\/p>\n The last airstrikes in Kabul by a foreign power were in 2022 when the US killed al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, according to ACLED data, Pandya said.<\/p>\n \u201cIn terms of the future of the relationship, a lot will depend on whether this escalation leads to a fundamental shift in how the Taliban deals with the TTP, which is really the main issue,\u201d Pandya said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe TTP fought alongside the Taliban against the US and NATO forces and there is a reluctance within the Taliban to seriously crack down upon them. It remains to be seen whether the mounting geopolitical costs will prompt a rethink on the part of the Taliban.\u201d<\/p>\n CNN\u2019s Joyce Jiang contributed reporting.<\/p>\n![\"(L](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/b9c8cad3cfdd3f7124f13f5842918fc6.jpeg\"\/)
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