US ‘Hostage-Taking’ Label Is Pretext for Future Action, Says Taliban

Enayatullah Khwarazmi, the ministry’s spokesperson, posted a video of a drone flight on X and said the Kohat military fort had been targeted.

He claimed that Taliban air force strikes destroyed military facilities, the command center, warehouses and troop accommodation at the fort, causing heavy casualties and significant material damage.

Pakistani officials have not yet commented on the Taliban’s claim.

Earlier, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said the Pakistani army had again bombed areas in Kabul, Kandahar, Paktia and Paktika.

According to the sources, the meetings would mark the first public engagement by European institutions with Taliban opponents to discuss the crisis in Afghanistan.

The sources said previous international meetings had largely focused on humanitarian aid, women’s rights and refugee issues. This time, however, the discussions are expected to shift toward political opposition and armed resistance against the Taliban.

In recent years, the European Union has emphasised engagement with the Taliban while avoiding official and public contact with opposition groups.

Belgium has previously hosted meetings on Afghanistan.

The European External Action Service held a senior officials’ meeting in Brussels on June 2025, to discuss Afghanistan’s political and humanitarian situation and the country’s basic needs.

The European Parliament also held public sessions in 2022 on Afghan women’s rights and hosted an event titled “Afghan Women’s Days”.

The European Union pursues what it describes as a policy of “limited and pragmatic engagement” with the Taliban. However, it does not recognise the group or grant it political legitimacy.

European officials have said such engagement is aimed primarily at addressing the situation in Afghanistan, delivering aid to the population and addressing security concerns.

At the same time, the European Union has repeatedly called for the formation of an inclusive political system, respect for human rights, counterterrorism efforts and protection of the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan.

European institutions have also repeatedly condemned Taliban restrictions on women and girls and called for those measures to be lifted.

In a statement on Thursday, March 12, UNSTFA said it had supported women with initiatives designed to bring change to their communities since the Taliban takeover. The fund said it values women’s participation in sustainable development.

Anwar-ul-Haq Ahady, a member of the Afghanistan Special Fund in Switzerland, told Afghanistan International in October that the fund had generated more than $500 million in returns so far. He said the funds’ assets, which previously stood at $3.5 billion, had risen to about $4.02 billion.

The fund had earlier said it assisted about one million people in Afghanistan in 2025, half of them women.

The United States transferred $3.5 billion of Afghanistan’s central bank assets to a trust fund in Switzerland to help support the Afghan economy.

Indian foreign ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said at a press briefing on Thursday, March 12, that Pakistan’s record of supporting terrorism undermines its credibility.

He added that such accusations were unfounded and said it had become a habit for Pakistan to blame India for its own mistakes.

Jaiswal said Pakistan’s narrative does not change the facts and that attempts to portray itself as a victim would not deceive anyone.

Pakistan and the Taliban launched attacks against each other in February. The exchanges have caused casualties among Taliban and Pakistani forces as well as civilians.

Pakistan’s defence minister Khawaja Asif has accused the Taliban of harboring militants.

India had earlier condemned the attacks and expressed support for the Taliban.

Pakistan’s military has repeatedly accused New Delhi of backing militants operating in Afghanistan.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Tahir Hussain Andrabi said at a press briefing on Thursday that Islamabad had not dispatched any official delegation to hold talks with the Taliban.

He said the individuals who travelled to Afghanistan were respected figures, but their visit was not organised by the Pakistani government.

Earlier, sources in Kabul told Afghanistan International that the delegation included Pakistani religious and jihadi figures, Maulana Fazlur Rahman Khalil, Maulana Abdullah Shah Mazhar and Maulana Sajid Usman.

According to the sources, the purpose of the trip was to explore ways to reduce tensions between Kabul and Islamabad.

The Pakistani foreign ministry spokesman also said Islamabad’s policy toward Afghanistan had not changed and that Pakistan had received no guarantees from the Taliban that attacks by militant groups from Afghan territory would stop.

Andrabi said the United Nations also had evidence regarding the issue.

Responding to a warning by the Taliban defence minister that Pakistan could be targeted if Afghanistan were attacked, he said Pakistan was already under attack.

He added that border crossings between the two countries remain closed and no new decision has been made on reopening them.

In another part of his weekly briefing, Andrabi reiterated Pakistan’s security concerns, saying Islamabad expects Afghan territory not to be used against Pakistan.

He said Pakistan wants effective action to prevent militant groups, which Pakistani officials say operate from inside Afghanistan, from launching attacks against the country.