481 Afghan Taliban killed, 226 checkposts destroyed as Operation Ghazab lil-Haq enters seventh day

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Wednesday that 481 Afghan Taliban operatives have been killed and more than 696 injured during the ongoing Operation Ghazab Lil Haq, launched in response to “unprovoked action” from across the Afghan border.

‘Operation Ghazab Lil Haq’ was launched late on Thursday after renewed clashes along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, when Afghan Taliban forces fired on multiple locations, prompting swift military retaliation. The neighbours have clashed along the frontier since last week, when Afghanistan launched a border offensive in response to Pakistani air strikes.

Islamabad said its February air strikes that sparked the escalation were targeting terrorists. Islamabad accuses Afghanistan of failing to act against terrorist groups that carry out attacks in Pakistan, which the Taliban government rejects. The border fighting has hit multiple Afghan provinces. The violence of recent days is the worst since the October fighting killed more than 70 people on both sides, with land borders between the neighbours largely shut since.

Providing a summary of the Afghan Taliban regime’s losses as of 4pm today, the information minister said 226 check posts had been destroyed and 35 others captured by Pakistani security forces.

“One hundred and ninety-eight tanks, armoured vehicles and artillery guns have also been destroyed during the operation,” he said.

The minister added that 56 locations across Afghanistan were effectively targeted by air strikes.

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The Pakistan Army is continuing operations against the Afghan Taliban, Fitna al-Khawarij and Fitna al-Hindustan under Operation Ghazab lil-Haq, state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported.

According to security officials, the army destroyed hideouts at 50 different locations using heavy weapons in its latest phase of action. Operations were carried out in the Qila Saifullah, Chaman, Sambaza, Ghudwana, Jani and Ghaznali sectors.

Security sources said Afghan Taliban, Fitna al-Khawarij and Fitna al-Hindustan suffered significant human and material losses during the operations.

In the Chaman sector, the Pakistan Army conducted what officials described as a successful intelligence-based operation against an armed Taliban formation.

According to security sources, one Afghan Taliban terrorist was killed, while three others were captured alive in a wounded condition.

The army cordoned off the area and completed a clearance operation, security has since been further tightened in the area.

Separately, the army foiled an infiltration attempt near Torkham, an Afghan Taliban ringleader was killed along with his associates while attempting to cross the border.

The latest escalation in tensions between the two countries follows a series of tit-for-tat actions over the past year.

Pakistan earlier carried out air strikes targeting camps of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Islamic State Khorasan Province inside Afghanistan after a wave of attacks in Pakistan, including a suicide bombing in Islamabad.

Pakistani security sources said more than 80 terrorists were killed in those strikes. The strikes prompted attacks by Afghanistan along the border, leading to the breakout of the latest round of open conflict.

Islamabad has long maintained that TTP leaders operate from Afghan territory, an allegation that Kabul has repeatedly denied.

Tensions also surged after a series of explosions in Kabul on October 9 last year. Taliban forces subsequently targeted areas along Pakistan’s border, prompting Islamabad to respond with cross-border shelling. The exchanges caused casualties and infrastructure damage on both sides and led to the suspension of trade after border crossings were closed on October 12, 2025.