Pakistani airstrikes hit multiple Afghan provinces, including Kandahar, killing four civilians, the Taliban government announced.
The bombings struck targets across Kandahar, Paktia, and Khost provinces, marking the latest escalation between the neighboring nations.
Islamabad said its military targeted ten specific sites, but local residents and Afghan officials reported damage to civilian residential areas and military infrastructure.
The strikes followed a September 18 attack on a Pakistani police compound that killed at least 31 people.
Pakistan claimed to have neutralized Afghan drones and previously launched retaliatory strikes in border regions that killed 28 militants.
Afghan government representatives condemned the overnight bombardment across the affected regions.
"People were shouting, and there was panic all around," said Abdullah, a local eyewitness.
"Afterwards, the village elder arrived and called out to the houses, asking if anyone was killed. Thankfully, no one was killed."
Local residents disputed claims that military forces were operating within the struck residential sectors.
"There is no military base here, nor are there any military personnel," said Salamat Khan, a local resident.
"There are only the homes of ordinary civilians."
Official government spokespersons issued stern warnings regarding the military action.
"Reckless, careless, and hostile," said Zabihullah Mujahid, Taliban government spokesman, adding the attack "will have adverse consequences for the Pakistani military."
In Paktia province, officials reported that jets bombed the Taliban-controlled 203 Mansouri Corps facility.
Kunar province spokesman Farid Dehqan told the BBC that three people died and four were injured in separate border strikes.
Pakistani officials maintained that the military operations were strictly targeted defense measures.
"Deliberate, precise, calibrated, and proportionate, and strictly limited to identified military objectives directly linked to the attempted attacks against Pakistan," said Attaullah Tarar, Pakistan's Information Minister.
Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar previously called for "concrete and verifiable" measures to ensure Afghan territory is not used for "terrorism" during a UN General Assembly meeting.
Data from the UN mission Unama indicates cross-border violence killed at least 499 civilians and wounded 1,216 others between October 2025 and June 2026.
Despite a March ceasefire agreement, international mediation efforts have failed to secure a permanent resolution.
