Pakistan Afghanistan war news updates: Over 270 Taliban personnel killed; 150 tanks and armoured vehicles destroyed, says Pak

Karachi’s Additional Inspector General Azad Khan has said that orders have been issued to put the entire city on high alert, according to the spokesperson for the Karachi Police quoted by the Dawn.

“The police chief has directed to make security arrangements at all sensitive installations, important government and semi-government offices, important buildings, airports, railway stations, bus terminals and other public places more stringent and effective,” the spokesperson’s statement said.

Britain was "deeply concerned by the significant escalation in tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan", UK Foreign Minister Yvette Cooper said Friday after Islamabad bombed major Afghan cities, including the capital Kabul.

"We urge both sides to take immediate steps toward de‑escalation, avoid further harm to civilians, and re‑engage in mediated dialogue," Britain's top diplomat said on X. -- AFP

Returnees at the Omari camp near Torkham described chaotic and terrifying scenes following an overnight mortar strike.

Gander Khan, a 65-year-old returnee, told AFP, “Children, women, and old people were running. I saw blood, it wounded two or three children, and two or three women,” standing amid rows of tents.

Another returnee said panic caused children to go missing. “Some have left their papers, and just escaped. They didn’t even take their money, they didn’t take their aid which they received. Because of fear, everyone left,” the 44-year-old said.

Sharp differences have surfaced in the casualty figures released by Islamabad and Kabul amid ongoing cross-border clashes.

According to Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, 133 Afghan Taliban fighters have been killed and over 200 injured in the fighting so far.

However, the Taliban government in Afghanistan has presented a sharply lower toll on its side, saying eight of its fighters were killed and 11 wounded.

The Taliban administration also claimed it had killed 55 Pakistani soldiers and captured two military bases along with 19 posts during the confrontation.

Meanwhile, Pakistan has stated that two of its personnel have been killed in the ongoing cross-border clashes.

The situation remains fluid, with both sides issuing competing claims as tensions escalate along the border.

The Taliban authorities in Afghanistan have announced that they conducted retaliatory strikes against Pakistani border posts located in the eastern and southeastern regions of the country. A spokesman for the Taliban government, Zabiullah Mujahid, informed the BBC that Afghan forces destroyed 19 Pakistani border posts and detained several Pakistani soldiers.

Amid the escalating tension between Pakistan and Afghanistan, Russia has called both nations to cease fighting.

Former Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai said Afghans will respond to aggression with courage amid the escalating war between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Tensions have flared between the two nations after Pakistan struck Afghanistan's capital Kabul and two other provinces.

Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah held a telephone conversation with Mohammad Ishaq Dar, Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs.

In a statement, the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs said during the call, the two sides discussed developments in the region and ways to reduce tensions in order to preserve regional security and stability.

Pakistan has launched Operation Ghazab lil-Haq against the Afghan Taliban following what it described as “unprovoked aggression” along the Durand Line, sharply escalating cross-border tensions between the two neighbours. According to Pakistani officials, the operation targeted Taliban defence positions in Kabul, Kandahar, and Paktia after Afghan forces carried out what Islamabad called a large-scale offensive across the border, during which 27 Taliban posts were destroyed and nine captured. Read here for more

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on Afghanistan and Pakistan to reduce tensions and adhere to international law amid escalating clashes along their border.

Iran has called on Afghanistan and Pakistan to manage and resolve their differences within the framework of good neighborly relations and through dialogue. Iran's foreign minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said Iran is ready to provide any assistance necessary to help facilitate dialogue and strengthen mutual understanding and cooperation between the two countries.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said his country’s armed forces can “crush” aggressors, hours after Islamabad struck targets inside Afghanistan's major cities overnight. “Our forces have the full capability to crush any aggressive ambitions,” Sharif said, according to the Pakistani government’s X page. “The entire nation stands shoulder to shoulder with the Pakistan armed forces,” he said. Read here for more. 

The Torkham checkpoint in Khyber District and the Friendship Gate in Chaman have been shut indefinitely to both commercial and pedestrian movement. Traders say hundreds of trucks are stuck at the crossings, putting millions of perishable goods at risk.

The two countries' 2,611-kilometre-long border is known as the Durand Line, which Afghanistan has not formally recognised.

A Pakistani drone attempted to infiltrate the Digwar sector of the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district. As per reports, the drone returned to Pakistani territory after firing by the Indian Army.

An earthquake of magnitude 4.7 hit Sankhuwasabha district on Friday in Nepal. There were no immediate reports of loss of life or damage of any kind due to the quake.

Counting for Jharkhand urban local body elections begins

Counting for urban local body elections in Jharkhand has started. Elections for 48 local bodies, including nine Municipal Corporations, 20 Municipal Councils, and 19 Nagar Panchayats, were held on February 23.

Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and expelled AIADMK leader O Panneerselvam is likely to join DMK today.

Tension prevailed in the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) campus on Thursday evening as the police tried to contain the students' union from taking out a protest march from the university to the Ministry of Education office. The march was part of the ongoing protests over JNU Vice Chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit's recent remarks on a podcast over the implementation of University Grants Commission (UGC) norms, rustication of JNUSU office bearers, and the proposed Rohith Act.

While police said protesters pelted sticks and shoes and resorted to physical assault, protesters alleged that excessive force was used against them, due to which many students were injured. The Delhi Police have arrested 14 people for the JNU protest violence, including JNUSU president Aditi Mishra and former  JNUSU president.

Students, police injured in clashes during JNU protest march, heavy deployment continues on campus

Police and JNU students were injured after they clashed during a march by the students' union on Thursday evening. While the police claimed that they were assaulted, the protesters, many of whom have been detained, alleged that the cops used excessive force against them. Heavy police deployment continued and the Delhi Police set up barricades to contain the students inside the campus as JNUSU protest continued.

PM Modi arrives in Delhi after concluding his two-day Israel visit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Delhi after concluding his successful two-day Israel visit. The visit culminated in the elevation of bilateral ties to a “special strategic partnership,” signalling New Delhi’s intent to anchor Israel as a long-term partner across defence, technology, trade, and security.

Pakistan’s defence minister Khawaja Asif has declared an “open war” on the Taliban government after both sides clashed. "Our patience has reached its limit. Now it is open war between us and you," Khawaja Asif posted on X. The announcement followed strikes by Pakistani forces on what officials claimed were Afghan Taliban defence sites in Kabul, Kandahar, and Paktia province.

Pakistan bombed major Afghan cities, such as Kabul, Kandahar and Paktia, after Afghan forces attacked Pakistani border troops, describing it as retaliation for earlier air strikes.