By The South Asia Times

QUETTA/ISLAMABAD -  Pakistani security forces have thwarted an attempted act of aggression by Afghan Taliban forces in the Gulistan sector, near Qilla Abdullah District of Balochistan province, along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, with several Taliban fighters killed in retaliatory action, according to Pakistani security sources.

The sources said Afghan Taliban personnel attempted to enter Pakistani territory and carry out an attack in the border area. Pakistani forces responded with what the sources described as “timely and effective” retaliatory fire, killing several Afghan Taliban fighters.

Intermittent exchanges of fire were continuing in the area, the sources said, adding that Pakistani troops remained on high alert and prepared to respond to any further attempt to cross into Pakistani territory from Afghanistan.

Afghan Taliban sources also confirmed the clash and said at least 12 Taliban fighters were killed in the clash.

The clash comes amid a sharp deterioration in relations between Islamabad and Afghanistan's Taliban regime, following a series of cross-border attacks, drone incidents and Pakistani military strikes inside Afghanistan.

On Thursday, Pakistan said it had conducted precision aerial and drone strikes against 10 locations inside Afghanistan that it said were being used to launch or store drones involved in attacks against Pakistan.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the strikes were carried out in the exercise of Pakistan's right to self-defence and were directed at what Islamabad described as military objectives linked to attacks originating from Afghan territory.

Afghan Taliban officials said the Pakistani strikes hit Kandahar, Paktia and Khost provinces and claimed that civilians were killed. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said four civilians had been killed.

Pakistan has rejected the Taliban claim, saying the targets were linked to drone operations against Pakistan.

Local Afghan sources said areas of Khost's Gurbuz district, including sites near the provincial capital and parts of Ismail Khel and Mandozai, were hit. Sources also reported a strike in Kandahar and an attack on part of the Taliban's 203rd Mansoori Corps compound in Paktia.

Taliban sources also confirmed that a Pakistani strike hit Sarai Mullah Sahib in Kandahar's ninth police district, a compound that is associated with special forces loyal to Taliban supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada. 

The source also confirmed the killing of Muallah Burhan, a key commander of the Taliban in Kandahar.

The latest escalation followed Pakistani strikes earlier this week in Paktika and Kunar provinces. Pakistan said its Sept. 21 operation killed 28 militants.

Pakistan has repeatedly accused terrorist groups operating from Afghan territory, particularly the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and affiliated factions, of carrying out attacks inside Pakistan. Afghanistan's Taliban regime has consistently rejected the allegation that it allows its territory to be used for attacks against Pakistan.

The confrontation has also intensified after a deadly attack on a police facility in Kohat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, last week. Pakistani authorities blamed militants linked to the Afghan-based insurgency, while responsibility for the attack was also claimed by the Afghanistan-based Hafiz Gul Bahadar group.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan International has reported, citing Pakistani security sources, that 260 Afghan nationals were killed while fighting alongside the TTP in Pakistan, with the sources claiming that their identities and personal details had been established. The same sources reportedly said the figure did not include fighters whose identities could not be determined.

The outlet also reported Pakistani security-source that Afghan nationals form a significant component of some TTP infiltration groups and that weapons and equipment left behind by US and NATO forces in Afghanistan have reached militant groups.

The Pakistani security sources cited in the report also attributed 1,327 deaths and 2,484 injuries in Pakistan during 2026 to attacks originating from Afghan territory.

The Gulistan fighting marks another escalation along a border that has repeatedly witnessed clashes since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021. Islamabad says the central issue is the presence of armed groups on Afghan soil and has repeatedly demanded that Kabul prevent militants from using Afghanistan as a base for attacks on Pakistan.

The latest escalation also threatens diplomatic efforts by China, Türkiye, Qatar and Saudi Arabia aimed at reducing tensions between the two neighbours. International mediation efforts have previously sought to establish mechanisms for preventing cross-border attacks and managing disputes between Islamabad and Kabul. 

However, the Afghan Taliban appear unwilling to take practical action against the TTP and other terror groups based in Afghanistan, viewing some of these groups as having fought alongside the Taliban against US and NATO forces during the war in Afghanistan.