Afghanistan Claims Bagram Strike Thwarted as Pakistan Border War Enters Fourth Day
Taliban forces say they repelled Pakistani jets targeting the former US mega-base as cross-border fighting intensifies along disputed frontier.
Afghanistan said Sunday it repelled Pakistani warplanes attempting to bomb Bagram Air Base, the sprawling former American military hub north of Kabul, as cross-border clashes between the neighbors stretched into a fourth consecutive day.
According to WRAL, Parwan province police headquarters reported that several Pakistani military jets entered Afghan airspace around 5 a.m. Sunday and attempted to strike Bagram. Afghan forces responded with anti-aircraft and missile defense systems, successfully thwarting the attack, the statement claimed. Pakistan has not responded to the allegation.
The attempted strike on Bagram marks a significant escalation in targeting. Once the largest US military installation in Afghanistan, the base was captured by the Taliban in August 2021 during their sweep to power. Last year, President Donald Trump suggested reestablishing an American presence there, citing its proximity to Chinese nuclear facilities. The base’s strategic value—featuring two concrete runways capable of handling heavy military aircraft and sitting at the crossroads of Central Asia—makes it a potent symbol of sovereignty for the Taliban government.
From Border Skirmish to Open War
The current conflagration began February 21 when Pakistan launched airstrikes against what it described as camps operated by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Islamic State-Khorasan Province in eastern Afghanistan. According to multiple sources, the strikes in Nangarhar and Paktika provinces killed at least 18 civilians, including 11 children, though Pakistan claims to have eliminated over 80 militants.
The airstrikes followed a deadly escalation of attacks inside Pakistan, including a February 6 suicide bombing at a Shia mosque in Islamabad that killed 36 people. Pakistan’s defense minister warned on February 11 that Islamabad would not hesitate to strike militant sanctuaries in Afghanistan if the Taliban government failed to act.
On February 26, Afghanistan launched what its Defense Ministry called large-scale offensive operations against Pakistani military positions along the Durand Line—the disputed 2,611-kilometer border that Afghanistan has never formally recognized. The Taliban claimed to have killed 55 Pakistani soldiers, destroyed 19 border posts, and captured two military bases. Pakistan responded with coordinated air and ground strikes on military installations in Kabul, Kandahar, and Paktia on February 27, prompting Defense Minister Khawaja Asif to declare the countries in “open war.”
The TTP Sanctuary Question
At the core of the crisis lies Pakistan’s accusation that Afghanistan provides safe haven to the TTP, a militant group responsible for hundreds of deaths inside Pakistan since the Taliban’s 2021 takeover. According to Crisis Group, Pakistani officials contend that all of Afghanistan now serves as “one big sanctuary” for the TTP, with Pakistan’s army chief claiming 70 percent of TTP formations entering Pakistan consist of Afghan nationals.
The TTP, while ideologically aligned with the Afghan Taliban and pledging allegiance to them, maintains an independent command structure. The group seeks to overthrow Pakistan’s government and establish an Islamic emirate. Afghanistan denies harboring the TTP, calling Pakistan’s insurgency a “purely domestic issue” that has existed for nearly two decades.
The dispute has been further complicated by Pakistan’s allegations that Afghanistan is aligning with India—its strategic rival—and by the presence of ISIS-K, which has conducted attacks in both countries and maintains an adversarial relationship with the Taliban. A fragile Qatar-mediated ceasefire brokered after deadly October 2025 clashes collapsed after multiple rounds of talks in Turkey failed to produce lasting agreements.
The Durand Line was established by British colonial administrator Mortimer Durand in 1893, dividing Pashtun tribal areas between British India and Afghanistan. Afghanistan has never recognized the border as legitimate, viewing it as an imposed colonial demarcation. The 2,640-kilometer frontier remains one of the world’s most dangerous border regions, with minimal government control, widespread arms trafficking, and frequent militant crossings. Pakistan has fenced the entire border since 2017, a move Afghanistan opposes.
Regional Powers Scramble
The escalation has triggered alarm across South and Central Asia. According to Al Jazeera, Russia, China, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia have attempted mediation, while Iran—which borders both countries—has offered assistance. UN Secretary-General António Guterres expressed deep concern and called for an immediate cessation of hostilities.
Fighting near the Torkham border crossing has disrupted trade flows and displaced civilians on both sides. The Norwegian Refugee Council reported that the Omari camp, a transit site for Afghan returnees from Pakistan, was affected by the clashes, with civilians injured and families at risk of displacement. Smoke was visible from the Afghan side of Torkham as of Saturday, with witnesses reporting ongoing artillery exchanges.
China has quietly engaged both governments, concerned about investments tied to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. India, meanwhile, expressed support for Afghanistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity—a statement that further inflamed tensions with Islamabad. The United States backed Pakistan’s right to defend itself against Taliban attacks, according to State Department officials.
- Afghanistan claims to have repelled Pakistani jets targeting Bagram Air Base, the former US mega-base now symbolically critical to Taliban sovereignty
- Cross-border fighting has killed dozens since February 21, with Pakistan conducting airstrikes on major Afghan cities including Kabul and Kandahar
- Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of harboring 6,000-7,000 TTP militants; Afghanistan rejects the claim and blames Pakistan’s domestic security failures
- A Qatar-mediated ceasefire from October 2025 collapsed after peace talks in Turkey failed to address underlying TTP sanctuary disputes
What to Watch
Whether diplomatic interventions from Qatar, China, or regional powers can produce more than temporary pauses in fighting. Pakistan’s willingness to strike deep into Afghanistan—including the capital—signals a strategic shift from reactive border defense to punitive deterrence. The Taliban’s asymmetric capabilities, including drones and potential urban attacks inside Pakistan, create risks of further escalation.
The structural question remains unresolved: can the Taliban government credibly suppress TTP operations without fracturing its own base, given ideological and ethnic overlaps between the groups? And will Pakistan accept anything short of verifiable action against militants as sufficient? The collapse of previous ceasefire agreements suggests that absent concrete mechanisms for counterterrorism cooperation and border management, the current violence may be a preview of a protracted low-intensity conflict along one of Asia’s most volatile frontiers.
The attempted strike on Bagram underscores how quickly tactical border skirmishes can escalate to attacks on strategic assets, raising the stakes for both sides and their regional backers.