Afghanistan Targets Pakistani Military Bases Including Nur Khan Air Base

Tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan escalated after Afghan Taliban authorities claimed responsibility for armed drone strikes on key Pakistani military installations, including the Nur Khan Air Base and the 12th Division headquarters in Quetta, Balochistan.

Afghanistan’s Ministry of National Defense said in a statement that its Air Force carried out “precise and coordinated aerial operations” targeting the Nur Khan Airbase in Rawalpindi, the 12th Division headquarters in Quetta, Balochistan, the Khwazai Camp in the Mohmand Agency of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and other military command centres.

“Based on preliminary assessments, the strikes successfully caused significant damage to the intended targets,” the ministry said.

The ministry added that the strikes were in response to recent Pakistani aerial incursions into Kabul and Bagram. It warned that any further breach of Afghan airspace would trigger “a swift, decisive, and proportionate response.”

Earlier, Taliban officials claimed a Pakistani fighter jet was shot down over Jalalabad. According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), the pilot parachuted to safety and was detained shortly after landing. However, Islamabad’s foreign ministry spokesman Tahir Hussain Andrabi told AFP: “That’s a false claim. Totally untrue.”

The escalation follows days of cross-border hostilities. On Friday, Pakistan launched airstrikes on the Afghan capital Kabul and the southern city of Kandahar, where Taliban Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada is based.

The Nur Khan Air Base, a key Pakistan Air Force installation, was previously targeted during Operation Sindoor by India, after which repair work was reported.

Claimed casualties on both sides

Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said 46 locations across Afghanistan had been hit since the start of Islamabad’s air campaign, claiming 415 Afghan soldiers were killed. Pakistan earlier reported 12 of its own soldiers killed.

The Taliban government’s deputy spokesperson Hamdullah Fitrat said more than 80 Pakistani soldiers were killed and 27 military posts captured. Taliban authorities earlier said 13 of their troops had died.

Casualty figures from both sides could not be independently verified.