Afghanistan’s Defence Ministry said Sunday that its forces had killed 28 fighters and wounded 32 others in the eastern province of Nuristan after a group allegedly crossed into Afghanistan from Pakistan.
The ministry said the group included members of Islamic State and former security personnel who served under Afghanistan’s previous government. It also alleged that Pakistani militias had supported the fighters.
Pakistan’s Information Ministry rejected the allegations, describing them as “frivolous, baseless and devoid of any truth.”
In a statement posted on X, Pakistan denied that its security forces or intelligence agencies were involved in the fighting in Nuristan. It also rejected claims that it had recruited or trained former Afghan security personnel or facilitated Islamic State or other militant groups operating in Afghanistan.
According to Afghanistan’s Defence Ministry, the group crossed into Kamdesh district of Nuristan, near the Pakistani border, on Saturday with the intention of carrying out attacks. Afghan forces launched an operation against the group, after which surviving fighters fled back across the border toward positions held by Pakistani militias, the ministry said.
The Afghan ministry further alleged that Pakistani armed personnel and militia members coordinated with the fighters but withdrew after the fighting began.
It also accused Pakistani intelligence officials of taking former Afghan security personnel to Pakistan under the pretext of providing assistance, training them and later sending them toward Nuristan.
Pakistan said Afghanistan had provided no evidence to substantiate the allegations. It also disputed a video circulating on social media that was allegedly being used to support the claims, describing the footage as staged.
Reuters could not independently verify the video, the Afghan Defence Ministry’s account or its reported casualty figures.
The latest incident comes amid growing tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Islamabad has repeatedly accused Afghanistan of sheltering militants who carry out attacks inside Pakistan, while Kabul has denied the allegations.
The incident also follows Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan on September 21. Pakistan said the strikes targeted militants and killed 28 of them. Afghan officials said civilians were also killed, while the United Nations mission in Afghanistan confirmed three civilian deaths.
