Information Minister says 81 locations across Afghanistan targeted by airstrikes
A Pakistani army soldier stands guard at a border terminal in Ghulam Khan, a town in North Waziristan, on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. Photo: AFP
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Sunday that 796 Afghan Taliban operatives have been killed and more than 1,043 wounded during the ongoing “Operation Ghazab Lil Haq”, launched in response to “unprovoked actions” from across the Afghan border.
The operation resumed after a temporary pause in deference to Eidul Fitr celebrations and requests from Islamic countries. The pause ended at midnight on March 23-24. The operation was launched more than a month ago in retaliation for Afghan Taliban forces firing at multiple locations. Islamabad said its February airstrikes that sparked the escalation targeted terrorists. Islamabad accused Afghanistan of failing to act against terrorist groups carrying out attacks in Pakistan, which the Taliban government rejected.
Providing a summary of the Afghan Taliban regime’s losses in its X account, the information minister said 286 checkpoints had been destroyed and another 44 captured by Pakistani security forces.
“During the operation, 249 tanks, armored vehicles and artillery guns were also destroyed,” he said.
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The minister added that the airstrikes effectively targeted 81 locations across Afghanistan.
✅Operation Ghazb lil Haq
✅Update 1700 hours 5 April 26✅ Summary of Fitna Al Khawarij/Afghan Taliban losses
▪️796 murdered,
▪️1043+ injured
▪️286 posts destroyed
▪️44 posts captured
▪️249 tanks, armored vehicles, artillery guns and drones destroyed
▪️81 terrorists and…– Attaullah Tarar (@TararAttaullah) April 5, 2026
“As part of these operations, on the night of April 2-3, an attempt to physically attack a border post in the Ghulam Khan sector by the Afghan Taliban/FAK (Fitna al-Khawarij) was completely thwarted and they suffered heavy casualties, including up to 37 sent to hell and more than 80 wounded,” Tarar said.
China, which shares a western border with both nations, has been trying to mediate between the allies-turned-foes, holding phone calls with its foreign ministers and sending a special envoy to visit in March.
On Friday he said negotiations between the two were progressing steadily, following reports that neighbors were meeting in China to “try to end their worst conflict since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.”
“Both Pakistan and Afghanistan attach importance to and welcome China’s mediation, and are willing to sit down for talks again, which is a positive development,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said at a daily news conference.
Fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan that began in October has killed dozens of people on both sides, with Afghans hardest hit.
Islamabad accuses the Afghan Taliban of harboring militants who launch attacks in Pakistan, although Kabul denies this and calls militancy an internal problem of its neighbor.
