Civilians Killed In Nangarhar, None Reported In Paktika, Says UN
The United Nations said at least 13 civilians were killed in Pakistan’s airstrike late Saturday on the Bahsud and Khogyani districts of Afghanistan’s Nangarhar Province.
The United Nations said at least 13 civilians were killed in Pakistan’s airstrike late Saturday on the Bahsud and Khogyani districts of Afghanistan’s Nangarhar Province.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said seven others were wounded in the attack, including women and children.
UNAMA said it had not received any reports of civilian casualties from Pakistan’s two airstrikes in Paktika Province.
Afghanistan’s acting representative to the United Nations said a formal complaint has been lodged against Pakistan following its airstrikes on Afghan territory.
Naseer Ahmad Faiq said the complaint was submitted to the United Nations Security Council. In a post on X on Monday, 23 February, he said Afghanistan’s permanent mission had formally raised what he described as a serious violation.
Faiq said Afghanistan had called for an immediate investigation into the incident, an end to further violations, accountability for those responsible, respect for states’ territorial integrity, adherence to the UN Charter and full implementation of international law.
Pakistan carried out airstrikes late on Saturday in areas of Nangarhar Province and Paktika Province.
The Taliban said 18 people were killed in the attacks, including women and children. The group’s Defence Ministry said Pakistani forces targeted civilian homes and religious schools.
Pakistan said the strikes were retaliatory and targeted militant sanctuaries, claiming at least 70 militants were killed.
Denmark is cooperating with the Taliban embassy in Oslo to facilitate the deportation of 57 Afghan migrants, Danish broadcaster TV 2 Denmark reported, citing officials. The report said the contact is limited to technical coordination.
Norwegian authorities said they have played no role in facilitating the arrangement and reiterated that they have not been involved in enabling the cooperation.
Denmark’s Immigration Service said 57 Afghan nationals are facing deportation following criminal convictions and the rejection of their asylum applications. In recent months, Germany and Austria have also established contact with the Taliban to facilitate the return of Afghan migrants.
Danish authorities stressed that engagement with the Taliban does not amount to formal recognition of the group and that dialogue is confined to consular matters.
Andreas Kravik, state secretary at Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the Afghan embassy in Oslo also represents Denmark and Iceland. He said Norway does not play a decisive role in the bilateral relations between those countries and the Afghan embassy.
Kravik did not rule out the possibility that Oslo could deport Afghan asylum seekers, saying any such decision would have to be reviewed by Norway’s Ministry of Justice and Public Security.
He added that Norwegian immigration authorities assess the human rights situation in Afghanistan and adhere to the principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits returning asylum seekers to countries deemed unsafe.
Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesperson for the Taliban, launched a sharply worded attack on Pakistan’s military, accusing it of creating regional instability at the behest of major powers.
Although he did not explicitly mention the United States, Mujahid said the Pakistani army’s current policies were a continuation of its cooperation with Washington during the period of US military presence in Afghanistan.
In an interview with TOLOnews, Mujahid said the Taliban bore no hostility towards Pakistan as a country but had differences with what he described as the ruling military establishment.
Asked about possible retaliatory measures, Mujahid said a response was forthcoming and urged observers to wait.
Neither the United Nations nor any country other than India has so far condemned Pakistan’s airstrikes in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar and Paktika Provinces.
Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for India’s Ministry of External Affairs, denounced the strikes and said New Delhi supports Afghanistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
In previous rounds of clashes between Pakistan and the Taliban, several countries, including Russia, Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye, called for restraint.
In October 2025, following border clashes between the Taliban and Pakistan, Saudi Arabia urged the dispute to be resolved through dialogue, saying such an approach would ease tensions and safeguard regional security. Turkiye and Iran similarly called on both sides to exercise restraint. As tensions escalated along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, Russia also appealed for calm.
However, after the latest Pakistani strikes inside Afghanistan, even Russia, described as the only country to recognise the Taliban administration, has not publicly responded.
The Taliban described Pakistan’s attacks as a clear violation of Afghanistan’s national sovereignty and international law, as well as a breach of good neighbourly relations and Islamic principles. The group said 18 people were killed.
Pakistan said about 70 militants were killed in the strikes.
Islamabad has repeatedly accused India of backing Baloch insurgents and has alleged that the Afghan Taliban cooperate with New Delhi.
Pakistan’s military has vowed to avenge the killing of two security personnel who died Saturday in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, warning that it would not let an attack launched from Afghan territory go unanswered.
In a statement, the army said the assault was carried out using Afghan soil and pledged to show no restraint in pursuing those responsible, saying it would retaliate against the perpetrators wherever they may be.
The military accused the Taliban of once again failing to prevent insurgents from using Afghan territory to carry out terrorist operations inside Pakistan.
It added that militants, described as “Khawarij”, continued to stage attacks in Pakistan from across the border, violating the sanctity of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
The Taliban have not responded to the latest statement. However, their spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid, has previously denied that fighters from Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or Baloch separatists are operating from Afghan soil, accusing Pakistan of shifting blame for its security failures onto Afghanistan.
Earlier Saturday, the army said insurgents attacked a security forces convoy in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, killing a lieutenant colonel and a soldier. It said five members of the Pakistani Taliban were also killed in the ensuing exchange of fire.
