The Taliban administration of Afghanistan has claimed that its Air Force, which is under-resourced, carried out retaliatory air and drone strikes on multiple Pakistani military targets, including sites it says are near the capital Islamabad and military headquarters Rawalpindi.
In a statement beginning with a religious invocation, Afghanistan’s Ministry of National Defence said its Air Force struck “a military camp near Faisalabad in Islamabad, the Army cantonment in Nowshera, the military township of Jamrud, and also in Abbottabad”.
The Kabul-based Tolo News reported that a drone targeted a military camp in the Nosher area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It also reported, citing sources, that Kabul’s “defence forces targeted key centres of Pakistan’s military regime last night using unmanned aerial vehicles”.
Pakistan has not officially confirmed any such aerial bombardment in its territory, though it has acknowledged the cross-border exchanges of fire along the disputed Durand Line, declaring an all-out “war”.
The Taliban described the strikes as retaliation for Pakistani air “incursions” in Kabul, Kandahar and Paktia that Afghan officials say killed dozens of civilians in the eastern provinces. While Kabul insists the operation was “conducted successfully”, independent verification of the scale, targets and impact of the Afghan aerial action remains limited.
However, that the Taliban could strike deep inside Pakistan is no less surprising. Faizabad, near Islamabad and one of the target sites, lies roughly 200 kilometres from Landi Kotal near the Durand Line.
DID THE TALIBAN AIR FORCE CARRY OUT AIRSTRIKES INSIDE PAKISTAN?
Afghanistan’s Ministry of National Defence in a statement on Friday said, “In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful… Our soldiers will be the victors”.
“The Ministry of National Defence’s Air Force today, around 11 am, carried out airstrikes on a military camp near Faizabad in Islamabad, the army cantonment in Nowshera, the military colony in Jamrud, and in Abbottabad”.
Faizabad is a major interchange and locality on the eastern edge of Islamabad, near its border with Rawalpindi in Punjab. It is roughly 8-10 kilometres from the city centre around Blue Area and D-Chowk. Rawalpindi or Pindi is where the Pakistani military is headquartered.
Following the official statement from Kabul, Tolo News, along with an image of parts of a crashed drone, reported that “Security sources have confirmed to Tolo News that a drone in the Nosher area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has targeted a military camp of the Pakistani military regime’s security forces”.
The Afghan defence ministry further stated that the “aerial operation was conducted successfully, targeting key military centres, facilities, and installations belonging to Pakistan’s military regime”, and described the strikes as retaliation for Pakistani air “incursions” in Kabul, Kandahar and Paktia.
However, there has been no independent confirmation from international news agencies verifying aerial bombardment deep inside Pakistan’s major garrison cities.
Most importantly, the Taliban’s repeated reference to Pakistan as a “military regime”, reveals Kabul highlighting that who the real power in Pakistan rests with. It is the Asim Munir-led military, rather than the civilian government of PM Shehbaz Sharif. The phrasing is a delegitimisation of Islamabad’s civilian leadership and framing of the conflict being driven by Pakistan’s military establishment.
WHAT HAPPENED ALONG THE DURAND LINE SO FAR?
The airstrike claims by Kabul come following intense fighting along the disputed Durand Line early on Friday. Taliban officials said they launched large-scale ground operations after Pakistani airstrikes in Nangarhar and Paktika provinces reportedly killed civilians.
Deputy spokesperson Hamdullah Fitrat said, “Along the so-called Durand Line, heavy retaliatory offensive operations have been launched against the enemy”.
He claimed Taliban forces captured “one headquarters and 19 outposts”, killing “up to 55 Pakistani soldiers”. It added that “Retaliatory offensive operations remain ongoing”. Earlier, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said the number of posts captured had reached 15.
Pakistan’s defence ministry responded on X by saying, Taliban fighters had opened fire across multiple sectors in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and that Pakistani troops mounted an “immediate and effective response”. It claimed to have inflicted heavy casualties and destroyed several posts.
These battlefield claims on both sides remain unverified.
WHY IS THE AFGHAN TALIBAN MILITARY DESCRIBED AS RAGTAG?
Despite inheriting equipment from the United States-backed former Afghan Republic after 2021, the Taliban’s air capabilities remain limited. The pre-2021 Afghan Air Force depended heavily on US contractors for maintenance, spare parts and pilot training.
Since the US withdrawal, sanctions, lack of technical expertise and shortages of functioning aircraft have constrained operations.
Open-source defence assessments indicate that only some helicopters and light aircraft are available with the Taliban’s air force. Afghanistan does not possess advanced fighter jets capable of sustained deep-strike missions comparable to Pakistan’s F-16s or JF-17s.
If drones were used in Nosher, as reported by Tolo News, they would likely be small systems rather than high-altitude strike platforms.
Afghan officials said the air operations were conducted in response to Pakistani airstrikes that allegedly killed dozens of civilians, including women and children. Pakistan has described its actions as “targeted strikes” against militant hideouts and has repeatedly accused Kabul of allowing Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan militants to operate from Afghan soil. The Taliban denied these charges.
However, both sides acknowledge cross-border clashes and artillery exchanges. What remains unverified are the scale of casualties, the capture of multiple posts, and the extent of any Afghan aerial bombardment inside major Pakistani cities.
