Series of Explosions Shake Kabul Amid Escalating Pak-Afghan Border Tensions
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Kabul, Dec 28 (NationPress) The capital of Afghanistan, Kabul, has turned into the focal point of multiple explosions over the past 24 hours as clashes between Pakistani and Afghan forces escalate. At 10 a.m. on Saturday, an explosion was reported near the Ministry of Interior close to Sheikh Zayed Hospital. This incident marks the second blast in Kabul within a single day, with the first occurring near the Indian Embassy in the Shahri Naw area on Friday.
“No casualties have been reported. A search operation is underway in the area. The reason for the explosion remains unclear at this point. There has been no official communication regarding the incident yet,” stated Samiullah, a local resident of Kabul.
Saturday’s blast follows what appears to be a series of targeted attacks around sensitive sites in the capital. On Friday, around 3:30 p.m., a loud explosion was heard near the Indian Embassy situated in the Shahri Naw area of Kabul. The Afghan Taliban regime has chosen to remain silent about this incident; however, reports indicated that the explosion led to at least 17 casualties.
“Yesterday’s explosion resulted in numerous fatalities and seemed to target a location close to the Indian Embassy in Kabul. On December 24, an Afghan employee of the Indian consulate in Jalalabad was attacked and sustained injuries,” a local source in Kabul revealed.
It is crucial to note that the explosions in Kabul coincide with intensifying clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan at the border. In the early hours of Saturday, a heavy exchange of gunfire was reported between Afghan and Pakistani forces along the Dande Pattan-Kurram border.
“Injuries have been reported on both sides. We are still awaiting confirmation regarding casualties,” reported a local source in the Kurram district of Pakistan’s Khyber Pukhtunkhwa (KP) province.
Furthermore, at least four security personnel have been martyred, and around 11 others have been injured during intense clashes with militants in Bajaur district of KP.
“Four security personnel have died and 11 have been injured during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in the Mulla Said Banda area of Bajaur district. The injured include a major-ranked officer. There have also been casualties among the militants. However, the militants have been encircled, and the firing continues,” a security source mentioned.
This recent wave of intense clashes between militants and security forces, coupled with ongoing heavy fire exchanges along the Pak-Afghan border, has compelled hundreds of families in Afghanistan’s Landoro Sadiqo village in Khost province to evacuate their homes due to fears of further armed confrontations.
During a recent Cabinet meeting, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif declared the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as a “red line” for the nation, urging the Taliban-led interim Afghan government to take decisive measures against the group.
“As TTP operates from Afghanistan, the Afghan government must take strong actions to prevent attacks on Pakistan. If this continues, it will be deemed unacceptable. Pakistan will protect itself at all costs,” he asserted.
The recent clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan have also been triggered by recent airstrikes by Pakistan targeting TTP hideouts in Paktika province of Afghanistan, which borders Pakistan’s South Waziristan district in KP.
Casualty reports were confirmed by the Afghan Taliban, who stated that they would respond to Pakistan’s aggression with full force.
“The Pakistani side must understand that such arbitrary actions do not resolve any issues. The Islamic Emirate will not leave this cowardly act unanswered and views the defense of its territory as an inalienable right,” declared Enayatullah Khowarazami, spokesperson for the Afghan Taliban’s Defense Ministry.
