The Taliban said at least 400 people were killed and 250 injured in the strike, which it said hit a drug rehabilitation hospital, while Pakistan rejected the claim, saying it targeted military installations and “terrorist support infrastructure.

Pakistan had long been a key backer of the Taliban, supporting its emergence in the 1990s as part of a broader strategy to secure “strategic depth” in its rivalry with India.

Relations initially appeared strong after the Taliban returned to power in 2021, with then-prime minister Imran Khan welcoming the development. However, ties deteriorated as Islamabad accused Kabul of failing to curb militant groups operating from Afghan territory.

Pakistan says leaders and fighters of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan are based in Afghanistan and have intensified attacks inside Pakistan. It also accuses Afghan territory of being used by Baloch insurgents.

Violence linked to these groups has risen steadily since 2022, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data, contributing to mounting pressure on Islamabad to act.

The Taliban deny providing safe haven to militants targeting Pakistan and counter that Islamabad harbours fighters linked to Islamic State, Pakistan rejects.

The latest strike follows weeks of intensifying clashes, including Pakistani air and ground operations targeting Taliban positions and infrastructure along the border. Officials said those actions came after attacks by Afghan forces on Pakistani border posts.

Pakistan’s defence minister has described the situation as amounting to an “open war,” reflecting the scale of the confrontation.Earlier attempts to stabilise the situation, including a ceasefire mediated by Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, have failed to hold.

Repeated border clashes, closures and disruptions to trade have further strained ties between the neighbours, signalling a breakdown in what was once a closely aligned relationship.

A Pakistani security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that Pakistan conducted the strikes overnight but said the targets were fighters belonging to the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a militant group Islamabad accuses of carrying out attacks inside Pakistan.

Khalil Zadran, spokesman for Kabul police, said the bombardment struck homes in the Afghan capital, leaving four people dead and 15 injured. Women and children were among the victims, he said.

The strikes occurred as hostilities between Afghanistan and Pakistan have intensified along their shared frontier, with both sides accusing each other of escalating violence.

Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said Pakistani strikes also targeted the southern province of Kandahar Province and the eastern provinces of Paktia Province and Paktika Province, all of which lie near the border with Pakistan.

In Kandahar, air strikes hit a fuel depot used by Kam Air near the city’s airport. The company supplies fuel to civilian airlines as well as aircraft operated by the United Nations, according to Afghan officials.

Pakistan has said its operations target militant groups and insists that its military has not killed civilians during the campaign. Casualty figures reported by both sides have been difficult to verify independently.

Tensions between the two neighbours have escalated sharply since late February.According to Afghan authorities, the latest clashes follow an offensive launched by Afghanistan on Feb.

26 along the border in response to earlier Pakistani air strikes targeting the TTP.Pakistan subsequently declared what it described as “open war” against Taliban authorities and carried out strikes in Kabul on Feb. 27.

Cross-border fighting has since intensified, including artillery and mortar exchanges in eastern Afghanistan. Afghan officials said four members of the same family, including two children, were killed in recent shelling in Khost Province.

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said that Pakistani military operations between Feb. 26 and March 5 had killed 56 civilians in Afghanistan, including 24 children.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said the violence has forced about 115,000 people to leave their homes.Clashes between Afghan and Pakistani forces have also disrupted trade and forced residents near the frontier to flee their communities in recent weeks.