Afghanistan says Pakistani mortars killed 2 children as fighting stretches into third week

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghanistan’s Taliban forces and Pakistan’s military exchanged fire at multiple locations along their shared border, killing at least two children and wounding 10 people in southeastern Afghanistan, Afghan officials said Monday, as fighting continued for a third consecutive week despite international calls for a ceasefire.

Ten people were also injured when mortar shells fired from Pakistan overnight struck villages in Afghanistan’s Khost province, said Mustaghfar Gurbaz, a spokesman for the provincial governor. He said several homes were destroyed.

The latest violence came a day after Pakistan said a mortar fired from Afghanistan hit a house in the northwestern Bajaur district, killing four members of the same family and wounding two others, including a 5-year-old child. Residents in Bajaur and officials said the military on Monday targeted Afghan positions along the border, where Sunday’s attack originated, and caused heavy losses.

There was no immediate comment from Afghanistan.

The cross-border clashes, which have included multiple Pakistani airstrikes on Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, are among the deadliest between the two neighbors in recent years.

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Islamabad has described the situation as an “open war.” Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari said Afghanistan’s Taliban administration crossed a “red line” by deploying drones that injured several civilians in Pakistan last week.

Responding to those drone attacks, Pakistan’s air force on the weekend struck equipment storage sites and “technical support infrastructure” in Afghanistan’s southern Kandahar province, saying it was being used for attacks inside Pakistan. Kabul said Pakistan hit two locations, including an empty security site and a drug rehabilitation center that sustained minor damage.

In Kabul, Afghanistan’s administrative Deputy Prime Minister Abdul Salam Hanafi overnight said defending sovereignty is the duty of all citizens if it is violated.

Speaking during a meeting with political analysts and media figures, Hanafi expressed regret over civilian casualties in recent Pakistani attacks, saying the war was imposed on Afghanistan.

However, Pakistan accuses Kabul of harboring militant groups, particularly the Pakistani Taliban, which it says carry out attacks inside Pakistan. Kabul denies the allegation, saying it does not allow its territory to be used against other countries.

The ongoing fighting between the two sides began in late February after Afghanistan launched cross-border attacks in response to Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan that Kabul said killed civilians. The clashes disrupted a ceasefire brokered by Qatar in October after earlier fighting killed dozens of soldiers, civilians and suspected militants.

Ahmed reported from Islamabad.