ISLAMABAD

An uneasy calm prevailed along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border on Friday morning after intense overnight clashes left at least 10 soldiers from both sides dead and several others injured, according to locals and officials.

Authorities in Islamabad and Kabul confirmed that fighting continued late into the night across multiple border sectors.

Afghan officials announced a halt to hostilities at midnight. However, Pakistani security sources said military operations extended beyond that point, with the Pakistan Air Force carrying out airstrikes in Kabul, Kandahar, and Paktia provinces.

The fresh airstrikes were confirmed by Afghan government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, who said no casualties had been reported from those strikes.

Local residents in the mountainous border region reported heavy firing throughout the night, but no gunfire had been reported since early morning, raising cautious hopes of de-escalation.

"There has been calm since early morning, and there is no firing in the border area right now," Hidayatullah Khan, a resident of the Bajaur border area, told Anadolu over the phone.

Both sides confirmed military casualties. Officials said 10 soldiers were killed in the clashes, including eight Afghan and two Pakistani troops, while several others were injured.

However, both governments also claimed to have inflicted heavy losses on each other.

Mosharraf Zaidi, spokesperson for Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for foreign media, claimed that 133 Afghan soldiers were killed and more than 200 wounded, with additional casualties expected following strikes on military targets in Kabul, Paktia, and Kandahar.

Meanwhile, Afghan deputy government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat said Afghan forces killed 55 Pakistani soldiers during four hours of fighting.

Anadolu could not independently verify the claims made by either side.

The latest confrontation marks one of the most serious flare-ups in recent months between the neighboring countries. Clashes erupted after Afghan forces launched border attacks in response to Sunday’s Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan, which left many dead.

In response to the border attacks, Pakistan launched extensive air and ground operations, targeting what it described as military positions across Afghanistan using both light and heavy weapons.

It follows Sunday’s airstrikes by Pakistan that Islamabad said killed 70 “terrorists,” while Afghan officials and the UN reported civilian deaths, claims Pakistan denies.

Relations have deteriorated in recent months as Pakistan accuses militants of operating from Afghan territory, an allegation Kabul rejects, even as diplomatic contacts continue amid efforts to ease tensions.