Pakistan’s foreign ministry said evidence gathered through a detailed investigation and technical intelligence indicated that the attack was “masterminded by terrorists residing in Afghanistan,” following a coordinated assault on Saturday involving a car bombing and a subsequent ambush targeting responding security forces.

The attack occurred in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province near the Afghan border, an area that has witnessed repeated militant violence in recent years. Images released after the incident showed the police post reduced to rubble.

In a statement, the foreign ministry said a senior Afghan diplomat had been summoned and formally presented with a strong demarche over the attack. Islamabad warned that it would not compromise on national security if militant groups continued to find sanctuary across the border.

“The Afghan Taliban regime has also been categorically informed that, if it continues to harbor these terrorist organizations, Pakistan will not compromise on its national security or on the safety and protection of its citizens,” the ministry said.

Deputy Taliban spokesperson Hamdullah Fitrat told Reuters the Afghan government had no immediate comment on Pakistan’s allegations.

Islamabad has repeatedly accused the Taliban-led administration in Kabul of allowing militants to use Afghan territory to plan and launch attacks inside Pakistan, a charge the Taliban denies. Afghan authorities maintain that Pakistan’s militancy problem is an internal matter.

The latest accusations threaten to further strain relations between the two neighbors after months of heightened border tensions. In February, some of the heaviest fighting in years erupted between Pakistani and Afghan forces following Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan that Islamabad said targeted militant strongholds.

Security analysts say continued militant violence along the frontier risks destabilizing already fragile relations between the two countries and complicating efforts to coordinate border security and counterterrorism operations.

The Istanbul-to-Kathmandu flight ignited after sparks emerged from the aircraft’s right landing gear during landing, according to Gyanendra Bhul, a spokesman for Nepal’s civil aviation authority.

“All aboard are safe, the rescue part is over. We are now investigating the accident,” Bhul told AFP.The incident briefly disrupted operations at Nepal’s busiest international gateway, with the airport’s sole runway closed for nearly two hours before reopening later in the morning.

Authorities did not immediately disclose the extent of damage to the aircraft or specify the model involved in the incident.The accident renewed scrutiny of aviation safety in Nepal, a mountainous nation known for difficult flying conditions, remote airstrips and rapidly changing weather patterns that have challenged pilots and airlines for decades.

Nepal’s aviation sector has faced repeated criticism following a series of fatal crashes in recent years. The European Union continues to blacklist all Nepalese airlines from operating within EU airspace over safety concerns.

In response to mounting international pressure, Nepalese authorities last year announced plans to upgrade aviation infrastructure, including installing improved radar systems and enhanced weather-monitoring equipment.

Monday’s accident also revived memories of a previous runway incident involving Turkish Airlines in Kathmandu. In 2015, a Turkish Airlines aircraft carrying 224 passengers skidded off the runway at Tribhuvan International Airport during landing.

No passengers were injured, but the disabled aircraft shut the airport for four days, triggering widespread international flight cancellations.

At 45, a Kashmiri homemaker who spent more than two decades raising three children says motherhood reshaped every aspect of her life, from personal ambition to daily survival, reflecting the largely undocumented experiences of women who sustained households through economic hardship and political unrest in the region.

Speaking during an interview conducted on International Mother’s Day, she described a life marked by early marriage, domestic responsibility and long-term sacrifice. Married at the age of 19, she said she had been employed at an endowment institution before her marriage, but was later unable to continue working after entering her husband’s household.

Her account illustrates the social realities faced by many women in conservative and rural communities across Jammu and Kashmir during the 1990s and early 2000s, where marriage often ended formal employment opportunities for women despite educational qualifications or work experience.

“I was young when I got married,” she said. “After marriage, my responsibilities changed completely.”

According to her account, the family lived in conditions of financial hardship during the early years of marriage. She worked alongside extended family members in agricultural fields while simultaneously caring for her first child. She recalled carrying the infant with her while working outdoors, relying on assistance from female relatives during long working hours.

The woman said motherhood altered her emotional priorities soon after the birth of her first child. “My love shifted from my family toward my first child,” she said, describing motherhood as a transition that demanded constant emotional and physical commitment.

Her eldest child, who conducted the interview, described her as the “cornerstone” of the family and credited her with sustaining household stability despite economic limitations. The family marks 24 years since she became a mother.

Throughout those years, she remained a full-time homemaker, managing domestic responsibilities that included childcare, cooking, maintaining the household and supporting her husband’s work schedule. The family home eventually expanded into a 10-room residence, which she continues to maintain largely on her own, according to the interview.

Despite never returning to formal employment, she continued informal educational engagement within the household. Fluent in Urdu, she regularly read Urdu moral literature and narrated stories to her children, using them as a tool for discipline and moral instruction.

Her children said those stories became central to their upbringing and helped shape their understanding of behaviour, honesty and family responsibility. “She taught us good habits through stories,” her child said during the interview.One memory recalled during the conversation involved a school morning when a child had forgotten to polish shoes before leaving home.

According to the account, she cleaned the shoes herself using her scarf so the child could attend school properly dressed.The episode, though minor, was presented by family members as representative of the routine, largely invisible labour performed by mothers within households.

Across South Asia, domestic work performed by women remains economically unrecognised despite contributing substantially to household functioning and caregiving structures, according to multiple studies by development agencies and labour economists.

In Kashmir, women have historically played dual roles in both domestic and agricultural sectors, particularly in rural districts where families depended on subsistence farming and seasonal labour. The woman interviewed said she frequently balanced field work with domestic responsibilities during the family’s most financially difficult years.

She also linked her experience of motherhood to the wider political instability in Kashmir. Having lived through decades of unrest in the region, she said she deliberately chose neutrality and restraint while focusing on protecting her household from the psychological strain of conflict.

“Being calm was important,” she said. “There was already enough unrest outside.”

The family described her approach as disciplined and emotionally controlled, even during periods of stress. Her child said she learned over time “to fight, not flight,” a phrase used to describe her ability to endure personal difficulties without withdrawing from family responsibilities.

Her physical appearance now reflects years of labour and age, according to the interview. Grey hair and visible wrinkles have appeared, yet her routine remains physically demanding. Family members said she continues to work daily in the kitchen garden, prepare meals, iron clothes and organise household tasks for the family.

“She still works continuously,” her child said. “Even today she handles the house, takes care of our father and prepares everything for us.”

The interview also addressed changing definitions of women’s empowerment in contemporary Indian society. While public discussions around empowerment often focus on education, employment and financial independence, the family argued that domestic labour and caregiving should also be recognised within those conversations.

“Empowerment is not only moving outside the home,” her child said. “It is also about how a woman turns a house into a home.”

The statement reflects an ongoing debate within Indian social discourse about the visibility and valuation of unpaid domestic work. According to data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and Indian time-use surveys, women in India spend substantially more hours on unpaid household labour than men, particularly in rural regions.

In this case, the woman’s contribution remained centred inside the household rather than through salaried employment. Yet family members said her role shaped the educational and moral foundation of all three children.

Although the children said they have not yet fully achieved their professional goals, they credited their upbringing and discipline to their mother’s consistency and guidance. “The morals she provided are difficult to explain,” her child said. “She is extraordinary.”

The woman’s life also reflects generational patterns among Kashmiri mothers who came of age before broader educational and employment opportunities became accessible to women in many parts of the region. While literacy and school participation among women in Jammu and Kashmir improved significantly over the past two decades, many women from earlier generations remained confined largely to domestic roles after marriage.

Despite those limitations, the woman interviewed said she never viewed motherhood solely as sacrifice. Instead, she described it as continuous work requiring patience, emotional control and adaptation.

“There were times we were hurt by our children,” she said. “But with time, I learned how to handle everything.”

Her account suggests an understanding of motherhood rooted less in idealism than endurance. Rather than describing dramatic events, she focused on repetitive daily responsibilities that accumulated over decades: preparing meals, managing finances during periods of poverty, caring for children during illness and maintaining emotional stability inside the household.

The interview concluded without expressions of regret regarding the opportunities she lost after marriage. Instead, she described satisfaction in seeing her children raised with education, discipline and social values.

Within the household, family members said she remains the central organising force even as the children enter adulthood. Her work, though informal and unpaid, continues to structure the family’s daily life.

“She made the house feel like heaven,” her child said.

According to an official statement, the exchange focused on developments in the region amid heightened geopolitical tensions, though no further details were provided on specific issues or outcomes of the discussion.

The call comes as countries across the region intensify diplomatic engagement in response to evolving security dynamics linked to the ongoing crisis involving Iran and its broader regional implications.

The violence on Monday killed seven civilians and wounded 85 others, according to a provincial health official, marking the latest escalation in tensions between the two countries after months of cross-border fighting.The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said it had documented “tens of civilians killed or injured” in strikes that hit Asadabad, including a university and surrounding areas of the city.

Afghanistan’s foreign ministry condemned the attacks as “a clear breach of the country’s territorial integrity” and summoned Pakistan’s charge d’affaires in Kabul in protest.Pakistan’s information ministry denied carrying out strikes on residential neighborhoods or the university, calling such allegations a “blatant lie.”

At the university campus in Asadabad, an AFP journalist reported broken windows and damaged solar panels following the attack.Irfanullah, a 20-year-old psychology student, said students dropped to the floor after hearing a loud explosion during class.“Each student tried to get to a safe place, but the windows were broken and some of the students were wounded,” he said.

Another student, Ibadullah, 23, said panic spread immediately after the strike.“Students ran, shoes and books were left on the ground,” he said.Both students declined to provide their surnames for security reasons.Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have remained strained since the Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021.

The latest violence follows heavy fighting along the frontier earlier this year, as well as Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan cities including Kabul, an escalation that marked one of the most serious military confrontations between the neighbors in years.A temporary ceasefire was agreed in March, and mediator China later said both sides had committed to avoiding further escalation.

Islamabad has repeatedly accused Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities of sheltering militants responsible for attacks inside Pakistan, an allegation Kabul denies.

The border between the two countries has remained largely closed since deadly violence in October, severely disrupting trade and cross-border movement.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said the two sides, along with China, committed to continued dialogue after seven days of negotiations in the western Chinese city.

The parties agreed to address key issues in bilateral relations, with terrorism identified as the central concern affecting ties.

“The three parties agreed to explore a comprehensive solution to the issues in the relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan, and clarified the core and priority issues that need to be addressed,” Mao said at a regular press briefing in Beijing.Both Afghanistan and Pakistan pledged they would not take actions that could “escalate or complicate the situation,” according to the Chinese readout.

Afghanistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi said the talks concluded in a “constructive atmosphere,” focusing on security, bilateral relations and regional stability.

Writing on X, he thanked Beijing for facilitating the discussions and expressed hope the process would build trust and enhance cooperation.There was no immediate comment from Pakistan on the outcome of the talks.

The discussions were convened after fighting that began in February escalated into what Pakistan described as “open war,” including airstrikes inside Afghanistan, among them in the capital Kabul.

According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the conflict has displaced about 94,000 people, while roughly 100,000 residents in two Afghan border districts have been cut off from assistance since the violence began.

Despite the talks, Afghan officials have continued to accuse Pakistan of cross-border shelling, while Islamabad has long alleged that Afghanistan provides safe haven to militants, including the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, an insurgent group allied with the Afghan Taliban.

Kabul denies the operations.

The quake hit at 8:42 p.m. local time (1612 GMT) at a depth of 186 km, with its epicentre in Badakhshan Province, according to the United States Geological Survey.

Afghanistan’s health ministry said the fatalities occurred in the Gosfand Dara area of Kabul Province, where a single family was buried under the impact of the tremor. “Eight members of a family died as a result of the earthquake,” ministry spokesman Sharafat Zaman said in a statement.

He added that a child, estimated to be around two years old, survived but was injured. The country’s disaster management agency confirmed the child had sustained injuries during the incident.

Journalists reported that the tremors were felt in Kabul and other parts of the country, though no immediate wider casualty figures were released.

Afghanistan lies along the seismically active Hindu Kush region, where the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates converge, making earthquakes a frequent occurrence.

The latest quake follows a series of deadly seismic events in recent years, including an August tremor that killed more than 2,200 people in eastern Afghanistan after devastating remote mountain communities.

The cabinet has ordered a 30% reduction in fuel and electricity consumption across government offices, alongside suspending certain staff training programs and halting the procurement of new vehicles, ships and aircraft. Decorative lighting for public celebrations has also been banned as part of broader conservation efforts.

Authorities said shopping malls and retail outlets would close earlier than usual, while office timings have been curtailed to limit overall energy demand in the country of more than 170 million people.

The measures come as Bangladesh grapples with heavy reliance on imported energy, which accounts for approximately 95% of its fuel needs. Officials are seeking alternative energy sources and arranging $2.5 billion in external financing to sustain essential imports.

The crisis has been exacerbated by global energy market volatility linked to ongoing geopolitical tensions, putting pressure on the country’s foreign exchange reserves and raising concerns over energy security.

The attacker was believed to be targeting a nearby police station but struck a civilian residence before reaching the intended site, said Muhammad Sajjad Khan, a local police official. The blast caused significant casualties among residents inside the house, he added.

The death toll was confirmed by Bannu assistant commissioner Ikramullah Khan, who said the injured had been shifted to nearby medical facilities.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, suspicion is likely to fall on Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, which has intensified attacks in the region in recent years, frequently targeting security installations.

Bannu lies in a volatile region bordering areas that were formerly part of Pakistan’s semi-autonomous tribal belt, long affected by militancy and counterinsurgency operations.

Pakistan has repeatedly accused neighboring Afghanistan of failing to eliminate militant sanctuaries used to plan cross-border attacks, an allegation denied by the Taliban authorities in Kabul.

Senior officials from both countries are participating in the discussions, which are being facilitated by China as part of efforts to broker a negotiated settlement between the neighbours, long linked by security ties but increasingly at odds over militancy and cross-border attacks.

The talks are expected to focus on securing a ceasefire and reopening key border crossings to restore trade and travel flows, according to sources cited in earlier reports, signalling an attempt to stabilise economic and civilian movement disrupted by months of hostilities.

“Our efforts for talks will continue despite the problems that will keep coming,” a Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesperson said during a regular media briefing, underscoring Islamabad’s position that dialogue remains the primary channel for de-escalation.

Pakistan has also acknowledged China’s role in facilitating the engagement, describing Beijing as an important global actor whose diplomatic efforts are complementary to regional stability initiatives.

Tensions between the two countries have escalated sharply since late 2025, with Islamabad accusing the Afghan Taliban authorities of harbouring militants from Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, an insurgent group it says is responsible for attacks inside Pakistan.

The Afghan Taliban has rejected those allegations, maintaining that militancy within Pakistan is an internal issue and denying any official support or sanctuary for the group.

The two countries share a 2,600-kilometre border that has historically been porous and contested, and recent fighting has marked a significant deterioration in ties that had initially shown signs of alignment following the Taliban’s return to power in Kabul in 2021.