SRINAGAR: Four civilians were killed in Afghanistan’s Spin Boldak district after heavy cross-border firing between Afghan and Pakistani forces late on Friday, officials in Kabul confirmed, as tensions between the neighbours escalated following unsuccessful peace talks in Saudi Arabia.
Afghan and Pakistani authorities accused each other of initiating the clash. Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman for Afghanistan’s Taliban government, said on X that Pakistani forces had “launched attacks towards” the Spin Boldak area, prompting Afghan forces to retaliate.
Unfortunately, this evening the Pakistani side once again launched attacks towards Afghanistan in the Spin Boldak district of Kandahar, prompting the Islamic Emirate forces to respond.
— Zabihullah (..ذبـــــیح الله م ) (@Zabehulah_M33) December 5, 2025
Pakistan rejected the allegation. Mosharraf Zaidi, spokesman for Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, said Afghan forces carried out “unprovoked firing” along the Chaman border and insisted that Pakistan remained “fully alert” to safeguard its territory and citizens.
Residents on the Afghan side told AFP the exchange began around 10:30 pm local time and continued for nearly two hours, with heavy and light artillery used. Ali Mohammad Haqmal, head of Kandahar’s information department, told AFP that mortar fire had struck civilian homes.
Tolo News reported that the casualties occurred in Maazal Gali and Luqman village areas, where further injuries were also recorded. A woman and a man remain in critical condition and are receiving treatment at Aino Mina Hospital.
Officials on both sides said the firing has since ceased following a mutual agreement to halt hostilities.
Tensions escalated sharply after deadly border clashes in October left dozens of soldiers, civilians and suspected militants dead, and hundreds more wounded on both sides. The violence followed a series of explosions in Kabul on October 9, which the Taliban government blamed on Pakistan and vowed to avenge. Although a Qatar-mediated ceasefire briefly eased hostilities, the fighting marked the worst confrontation between the neighbours in years, and subsequent peace talks in Istanbul failed to produce any breakthrough.
