Overview
- Islamabad says intelligence-based raids hit seven sites tied to the Pakistani Taliban and Islamic State Khorasan in response to recent suicide bombings.
- Pakistan links the action to attacks in Islamabad, Bajaur and Bannu, including a convoy blast hours earlier that killed two soldiers.
- State Minister Talal Chaudhry claims nearly 70 militants were killed, a figure Kabul rejects and which has not been independently verified.
- Taliban officials report civilian deaths and damage in Nangarhar and Paktika, with local reports citing strikes on a madrassa and residential homes in districts including Bermal, Khogyani, Argun, Behsud and Ghani Khel.
- Afghanistan summoned Pakistan’s ambassador and labeled the strikes a breach of sovereignty, as analysts warn the fragile, Qatari- and Turkish-brokered ceasefire is at risk.