PAKISTAN said that it killed dozens of Afghan security forces and militants in overnight fighting today following days of clashes along the border, marking the deadliest violence between the neighbours in years.

Islamabad accuses Kabul of harbouring armed groups, a claim rejected by Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers. 

Afghan officials earlier said the attack killed 12 civilians and wounded more than 100 others.

The AFP news agency quoted a district hospital official as saying 80 women and children were among the wounded.

Pakistan, facing a surge in militant attacks since the Taliban’s 2021 takeover, said it had killed Afghan security forces and militants and destroyed tanks and military posts after repelling what it called “unprovoked” assaults. 

It denied targeting civilians after Taliban officials said Pakistan used light and heavy weapons against the border town of Spin Boldak in Kandahar.

Taliban chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said that Afghan forces responded by killing several Pakistani soldiers and seizing weapons, including tanks. 

Pakistan’s army also targeted militant hideouts in the Afghan capital, two Pakistani security officials said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak with the media.

Residents of the Pakistani border town of Chaman reported mortar fire near villages and some families were seen evacuating early today. 

“This fighting has been going on since early yesterday morning and people who live close to the border are leaving the area,” said resident Najibullah Khan, who urged the two countries to end the fighting to prevent further shelling.

The clashes briefly halted on Sunday after appeals from Saudi Arabia and Qatar, but soon resumed, raising fears of wider instability in a region where groups such as Islamic State and al-Qaida continue to operate.

Pakistan’s border regions have experienced violence since 1979, when it became a front-line state in the Western war against the Soviet Union.

“After the September 11 attacks, Pakistan’s tribal belt descended into chaos as the Afghan Taliban, al-Qaida, and other groups operated from both sides of the border for attacks on Nato forces and Pakistani security forces,” said Abdullah Khan, a defence analyst and managing director of the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies.

As of today, key border crossings between the two countries remained closed.