Blasts in Kabul as Pakistan-Afghanistan clashes intensify

Explosions and gunfire echoed across Kabul on Sunday morning as fighting between Afghanistan and Pakistan entered a fourth day. A reporter in the Afghan capital described air bursts before sunrise and bursts of gunfire across parts of the city.

Taliban administration spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said the sounds were the result of Afghan forces targeting Pakistani aircraft over the capital, and urged residents not to worry.

There was no immediate word on what had been targeted or whether there were casualties. Pakistan had previously said its air strikes inside Afghanistan targeted militant infrastructure, while Afghanistan described the strikes as a violation of sovereignty and said it would retaliate along their shared border. Both sides have reported heavy losses, but independent verification has not been possible. The engagement is among the neighbours’ most violent in years and raises fear of a broader conflict along their 2,600-km (1,615-mile) frontier.

The violence also included reports of a Pakistani fighter jet crashing in Jalalabad, with a pilot reportedly captured by Afghan forces, according to Afghan military and police.

Officials from Pakistan did not respond to requests for comment, including the prime minister’s office, the information ministry and the military.

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