Taliban Fires at Pakistani Drones Over Paktia Amid Rising Cross-Border Tensions

Local sources in eastern Afghanistan have reported that drones attributed to Pakistan flew over parts of Paktia province this morning, prompting Taliban forces to open fire in response. According to Afghan media, these drones were spotted around 10 a.m. local time in the skies over Paktia. Sources claim that after spotting the drones, Taliban forces fired upon them using both light and heavy weapons.

So far, local Taliban officials in Paktia and Khost have not commented on these reports. Just a day prior, similar claims emerged about Pakistani drones patrolling the skies over Khost province.

In recent months, there have been multiple reports of unidentified drones flying over various provinces in Afghanistan. Taliban officials have, on occasion, alleged that these drones have crossed into Afghan airspace from Pakistan.

These allegations come amid ongoing security tensions between Kabul and Islamabad in recent years. Pakistani officials have repeatedly accused the Taliban administration of allowing members of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) to operate from Afghan soil—a charge the Taliban have denied, stating they do not permit the use of Afghan territory against any country.