Afghanistan says it killed 28 fighters, wounded 32 after group crosses over from Pakistan

Afghanistan's defense ministry announced on Sunday that its forces had engaged in a confrontation with 28 fighters and wounded 32 of them in the eastern province of Nuristan, following a group allegedly comprising Islamic State terrorists who crossed the border from Pakistan. The ministry accused Pakistani militias of backing the fighters and claimed that the majority of them were former Afghan government security personnel.

However, Pakistan's military and information ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Reuters was unable to independently verify the ministry's account or its casualty figures.

Kabul's assertion that Pakistani intelligence played a role in training and deploying former Afghan security personnel across the border constitutes a direct allegation of state involvement in an armed incursion. This accusation comes less than a week after Pakistan carried out airstrikes inside Afghanistan, claiming to have targeted militants. Pakistan has long accused Afghanistan of harboring fighters who launch attacks on its territory, a claim that Kabul vehemently denies.

The Afghan ministry reported that the group crossed into Kamdesh, a district of Nuristan situated close to the Pakistani border, on Saturday with the intent of launching attacks. Upon crossing, Afghan forces initiated an operation, and the surviving fighters subsequently fled back across the border towards Pakistani militia positions.

The ministry alleged that Pakistani armed personnel and militia members had coordinated with the fighters prior to the commencement of hostilities, but withdrew once the fighting commenced. Moreover, the ministry accused Pakistani intelligence of orchestrating the transfer of former Afghan security personnel to Pakistan under the guise of offering them assistance, providing them with training, and subsequently sending them toward Nuristan.