The border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, a flashpoint for decades, has once again erupted into deadly violence, leaving dozens dead, halting crucial trade, and plunging relations between the two neighbors to their lowest point since the Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021. Over the weekend of October 11-12, 2025, fierce fighting broke out along the 2,600-kilometer (1,600-mile) Durand Line, marking the deadliest conflict between the countries in recent memory, according to multiple international news agencies including the Associated Press and DW.
The chain of events began after the Taliban government in Afghanistan accused Pakistan of conducting airstrikes in Kabul and the eastern province of Paktika earlier in the week. Pakistan’s government, for its part, did not confirm or deny the airstrikes but repeatedly asserted its right to self-defense and its need to address surging cross-border militancy. Tensions, already high, boiled over late Saturday night when Taliban forces attacked multiple Pakistani military outposts, triggering a ferocious response from Pakistan’s army.
The two sides have reported sharply conflicting casualty figures. The Taliban claimed to have killed 58 Pakistani soldiers and captured 25 Pakistani army posts. Pakistan’s military, in contrast, reported 23 soldiers killed and said it had neutralized more than 200 Taliban and affiliated fighters, as reported by Dawn and The Economic Times. Taliban officials insisted only nine of their fighters had been killed. Access to the border region remains tightly restricted, making independent verification of these claims nearly impossible.
As the violence raged through the night and into Sunday, both sides exchanged gun, artillery, and drone fire. By Monday, October 13, the border crossings—vital arteries for bilateral trade and the movement of people—remained closed. Hundreds of people and trucks loaded with goods were left stranded on both sides. At the southwestern Chaman border crossing, authorities allowed about 1,500 Afghan nationals, who had been stranded since Sunday, to return home on foot, according to government officer Imtiaz Ali. The key northwestern Torkham crossing, however, stayed shut to all travel and trade, leaving Afghan refugees and traders in limbo. Gul Rahman, an Afghan refugee, told the Associated Press he had waited at Torkham before returning with his family to Peshawar, joining hundreds of others displaced by the closure.
The fallout from the clashes has been immediate and severe. On October 13, Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif and the country’s powerful army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, attended a mass funeral in Rawalpindi for the soldiers killed in the fighting. In a statement released by the military, Asif declared, “The people of Pakistan are indebted to the ultimate sacrifice of these heroes who laid down their lives while defending the territorial integrity of Pakistan against the cowardly and treacherous aggression of the Taliban regime and Indian sponsored terrorist proxies operating from inside Afghan soil.” He added, “The armed forces of Pakistan remain resolute to thwart any aggression and conspiracy against Pakistan with full support of the nation.”
On October 14, Asif appeared on Geo News and made clear that ties with Afghanistan are now “suspended,” describing the current situation as a “stalemate.” He warned, “There are no ties, direct or indirect, as of today,” and cautioned that hostilities could resume “at any time.” Asif also rejected the prospect of negotiations under duress, stating, “If Afghanistan wants negotiations while threatening Pakistan at the same time, then they should act on their threats and we’ll negotiate after.” He defended Pakistan’s military response, saying, “If you are attacked, you instantly have the right to react and target wherever the attack is originating from. We did not target populated areas, we did not target civilians, we targeted their hideouts.”
Pakistan’s military further claimed that, during the overnight skirmishes, it had briefly captured 21 hostile positions on the Afghan side of the border and rendered multiple terrorist training camps inoperative. According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), “The infra-structural damages to Taliban posts, camps, headquarters and support networks of terrorists are extensive, all along the border and range from tactical to operational depth.” The ISPR emphasized, “Our resolve to defend Pakistan’s territorial integrity and to defeat those who threaten our security is unwavering.”
The roots of this latest crisis run deep. Since the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, relations between Islamabad and Kabul have steadily deteriorated. Pakistan has long accused Afghanistan’s Taliban government of sheltering the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a group responsible for a surge in deadly attacks inside Pakistan—claims the Taliban deny. According to a recent UN report cited by DW, the TTP “receive substantial logistical and operational support from the de facto authorities,” referring to the Taliban government in Kabul. From January to September 15, 2025, over 500 people—including 311 troops and 73 policemen—were killed in TTP attacks, as reported by AFP.
The Afghan Taliban, meanwhile, have accused Pakistan of repeated violations of Afghan territory and airspace, and of bombing Kabul and eastern Afghanistan. Last week’s accusations of Pakistani airstrikes in Kabul were met with silence from Islamabad, which neither confirmed nor denied the reports but insisted on its right to defend itself. The Taliban’s attack on Pakistani troops late Saturday was described as retaliation for these alleged airstrikes.
The international response has been swift and cautious. Russia, which has sought to boost its influence in Afghanistan since the withdrawal of U.S. troops and officially recognized the Taliban government in July 2025, called for restraint. The Russian Foreign Ministry stated on October 13 that “the situation is stabilizing,” echoing similar appeals from China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while professing to “greatly value dialogue and diplomacy,” warned that “any further provocations would be met with an unwavering and befitting response.”
Analysts warn that the situation remains fragile. Michael Kugelman, a South Asia analyst, told DW that the crisis is “driven by Islamabad’s failure to curb Afghanistan-based anti-Pakistan terrorism,” and that intensified counterterrorism operations by Pakistan have now sparked a Taliban response. Omar Samad, former Afghan ambassador to Canada, cautioned that hostility could “escalate into widespread violence and military action beyond what we are experiencing,” with potentially irreparable damage to the relationship between the countries. Both experts highlighted the risk of increased reprisal attacks by the TTP, which maintains a strong presence in Pakistan despite its main base in Afghanistan.
Despite the current standoff, there have been attempts in recent years to improve ties, including Pakistan’s announcement in May to upgrade diplomatic relations with the Taliban government. However, the mass deportation of Afghans from Pakistan—a move that has seen over 800,000 sent back—has only added to the tensions.
For now, the guns have fallen silent, but the border remains closed, and the prospect of renewed violence looms large. As Samad put it, “Now is the time for statesmanship, caution and honest dialogue. There is no time for deception, spin and bluster.” The coming days will test whether both sides can heed that advice—or if the cycle of violence will spiral further out of control.