Afghanistan: Pakistan Forces Shelled Afghan Villages

Tensions Rise on Border After Militants Flee Into Afghanistan

Another overnight cross-border raid by militants from Afghanistan’s Kunar Province into neighboring Pakistan was quickly repelled, according to Pakistani officials, but it also spawned an angry response from the Afghan government.

That’s because after the militants fled across the border, Afghan officials say the Pakistani military kept shelling them, hitting Afghan villages in Kunar and causing civilian casualties. Exactly what those casualties were was not revealed.

The attacks inside Pakistan targeted a paramilitary checkpoint and left four soldiers killed as well. The Pakistani military again complained about the NATO occupation forces’ inability to control their side of the border, particular in Kunar.

Afghan officials said they issued a complaint about the shelling as well, but with both sides constantly issuing complaints about one another it seems unlikely the latest incident is going to make anyone give an inch. Rather it will further entrench the tensions along the border.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.