UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk implored Pakistan and Afghanistan to end the fighting.
“Civilians on both sides of the border are now having to flee from airstrikes, heavy artillery fire, mortar shelling and gunfire,” Turk said.
“I plead with all parties to bring an end to the conflict, and to prioritise helping those experiencing extreme hardship,” he said in a statement issued in Geneva, a copy of which was made available to Dawn.
Citing security sources, state-run PTV said in a post on X that armed forces had destroyed terrorist hideouts adjacent to the Pak-Afghan border in the Zhob and Qila Saifullah sectors.
The sources said that during the Pakistan Army’s effective operation, the Afghan Taliban were forced to abandon their posts and flee.
The Pakistan armed forces have destroyed multiple Afghan Taliban and Fitna al Khawarij posts in the Kurram sector, state broadcaster PTV reports, citing security sources.
Pakistani forces have retaliated in an effective manner to “unprovoked firing” by Afghan Taliban on the border between the Kurram sector and Afghanistan’s Paktika province, according to security sources.
The sources said there were reports of multiple Afghan Taliban posts being destroyed and casualties among them.
More than 100,000 Afghans and thousands of Pakistanis have been forced from their homes by fighting along their shared border, the United Nations’ refugee agency says.
“Clashes along the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan have forced thousands of families to flee,” the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has said in a statement.
“The situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan remains tense amid active conflict along the border, with reports of internal displacement in both countries,” UNHCR said, warning that “an estimated 115,000 people in Afghanistan and around 3,000 people in Pakistan” have been displaced.
Russia has expressed concern about the ongoing fighting between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban, calling for a refrain from hostilities and the process of dialogue
In a statement posted on X, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova noted clashes involving aircraft and heavy weaponry across “virtually the entire border area”.
“There have been casualties on both sides. The civilian population is suffering, including Afghan refugees who have returned from neighbouring Pakistan and Iran,” she was quoted as saying.
“We once again call on Kabul and Islamabad to refrain from military confrontation and resolve their differences through dialogue based on mutual respect.”
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has briefed his Malaysian counterpart Anwar Ibrahim on “recent developments regarding Afghanistan”.
In a post on X, the prime minister said he spoke with Ibrahim and briefed him “on recent developments regarding Afghanistan and Pakistan’s efforts to combat terrorism”.
The two “agreed to remain in close contact and coordinate our efforts for peace and stability in the region”.
The pair also expressed “deep concern” at the situation in the Middle East, following the US and Israel’s coordinated attack on Iran.
A senior security official has said that the Afghan Taliban were well aware of Pakistan’s concerns and demands, adding that the regime needed to take “verifiable steps” if it wanted a ceasefire or a dialogue.
Briefing Khyber Pakhtunkhwa-based journalists at the Inter-Services Public Relations headquarters, the senior security official said that the Afghan Taliban regime was “well aware of Pakistan’s concerns”, adding that the “decision was now theirs”.
“If they want dialogue or a ceasefire, they must take verifiable steps,” the official said. “Pakistan does not wish to attack anyone; our priority remains the country’s security,” he added.
He further said that the Pak-Afghan border was the only international border that was “guarded on one side” by Pakistan, instead of maintaining bilateral surveillance.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has spoken to Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto. In a post on X, he said, “We exchanged views on the deeply concerning situation in the Middle East and agreed on the urgent need for restraint and renewed diplomacy to prevent further escalation.”
He further said that the two also discussed recent developments in Afghanistan and “agreed to remain in close contact in the days ahead as we work together for peace and stability in the region”.
The Pakistan Army targeted 41 posts of the Afghan Taliban and Fitna Al Khawarij with light and heavy weapons on the night of March 4/5, security sources say.
According to the sources, the army conducted the operations in the border areas adjacent to the Chaman, Zhob, Noshki sectors and Qila Abdullah.
The sources said the actions caused “heavy casualties and financial losses” to the Afghan Taliban and the terrorists.
“The activities under Operation Ghazab lil-Haq will continue until the set goals are fully achieved,” a security source said.
Two civilians have reportedly been killed and one was injured when a missile fired from an unidentified direction struck the Governor Cottage inside Miranshah Cantonment in North Waziristan late at night.
According to local sources, the missile landed within the premises of the Governor Cottage, partially damaging the structure. The Deputy Commissioner (DC) Compound also sustained severe damage due to the impact and the intensity of the explosion.
However, officials have yet to issue a formal statement confirming the exact extent of the damage or the casualties.
Residents said a powerful explosion was heard across Miranshah and its surrounding localities, after which a heavy contingent of security personnel rushed to the site. The area was immediately cordoned off and a search operation was launched.
Initial reports suggest that the two deceased were civilians who happened to be nearby at the time of the attack. Their identities have not yet been officially released.
An investigation has been initiated to determine the nature of the attack and identify those responsible.
Suspected drones have been seen flying over Ejaz Shaheed Police Lines in Dera Ismail Khan, prompting immediate action by police personnel on duty, officials said.
According to a police official, two suspected drones were detected within the sensitive security zone of the police lines. As soon as the drones were spotted, police personnel became alert and immediately opened fire in an attempt to intercept them.
Police also sounded sirens while firing at both suspected drones. However, the drones managed to escape despite the police response.
Following the incident, security around the police lines and surrounding areas was further strengthened. Law enforcement agencies have also started investigations to determine the purpose and origin of the suspected drones.
Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, paying tribute to the Pakistan Army, expressed gratitude over the success of operation Ghazab-Lil-Haq, according to state-run PTV.
Chairing a meeting of the provincial Apex Committee, the chief minister reviewed matters relating to law and order in the province, and expressed satisfaction over effective collaboration between institutions.
Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir on Wednesday said that the use of Afghan soil by Fitna al Khawarij and Fitna al Hindustan for terrorism against Pakistan was “unacceptable”, adding that all “necessary measures would be taken to neutralise the threat emanating from across the border”.
According to a statement by Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), CDF Munir made the remarks as he visited Wana in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s South Waziristan to review the prevailing security situation and operational preparedness along the Western border.
The armed forces have killed 481 Afghan Taliban personnel so far as operation Ghazab lil-Haq continues, up from 464 killed till yesterday evening, according to Information Minister Attaullah Tarar.
In an update posted on X, Tarar said that as of 4pm on March 4, security forces have injured over 696 Afghan Taliban personnel, destroyed 226 checkposts, and captured 35 posts.
He further detailed that 198 tanks, armoured vehicles and artillery guns have been destroyed, while 56 locations across Afghanistan have been “effectively” targeted by air.
PM’s political advisor Rana Sanaullah, who attended an in-camera briefing hours ago, has said Pakistan’s targets in Operation Ghazab lil-Haq have “almost been achieved” and are being fortified now.
Speaking to Geo News, he stressed that Pakistan’s only demand was that Afghan Taliban “do not allow their soil to be used for terrorism against us”.
“So, if they back off from it, we have no fight with them,” the minister added.
The army has foiled an infiltration attempt by Afghan Taliban and Fitna al Khawarij near Torkham in KP, Radio Pakistan reports, citing security sources.
According to security sources, an Afghan Taliban ringleader was killed along with his associates while attempting infiltration.
A terrorist commander was killed in an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in the Paharkhel Pacca area of Lakki Marwat district, police sources said.
The operation was jointly conducted by the police, the CTD, and security forces following information about the presence of terrorists.
Ghaznikhel police station SHO Abdul Muneem Khan said that the law enforcement personnel were engaged in a search and strike operation in the area when they were informed that terrorists had come to a hilly area with the intention of carrying out subversive activities.
“When the fire exchange stopped, the security personnel found the body of a terrorist commander during a search and shifted it to the District Headquarters Hospital at Tajazai”, he maintained.
Two mortar shells have been fired at the residence of Qayyum, brother of prominent tribal elder Malik Saidullah Wazir, in the Nargasai area of Lower South Waziristan’s Birmal tehsil, police say.
Glass is shattered on the floor after a mortar attack on the house of a tribal elder’s brother in Lower South Waziristan. — via AK Wazir
According to police officials, the shells were launched from an unidentified direction during the early hours. One of the mortar rounds exploded within the premises of the house, while the second failed to detonate.
The explosion caused partial damage to the building and minor damage to a parked Fielder vehicle. Rooms of the house and some small livestock present in the courtyard were also affected by the blast. However, no casualties were reported.
Police officials said an investigation has been initiated to ascertain the exact location from where the shells were fired and to identify those responsible.
Wazir is regarded as an influential tribal figure in Lower South Waziristan and Upper South Waziristan. Following the events of 9/11 and the subsequent war against militancy, members of his family reportedly played an active role in resisting foreign militants in the region.
Pakistan’s attack on Afghanistan’s Bargam Air Base destroyed an aircraft hangar and two warehouses, NYT reports, as per PTV.
“Satellite imagery showed flattened warehouses at the base that served as the nerve center of America’s 20-year war in Afghanistan, a prized asset for the Taliban,” the NYT report stated.
The outlet further said Pakistan has carried out more than 50 attacks on Afghanistan’s military targets.
PTV quoted experts as saying that attack on Bagram was a “clear message to the Afghan Taliban regime that Pakistan can carry out operation anywhere in Afghanistan”.
Unknown armed men have blown up Government Middle School Sharif Khan Kot for the second time in the Darablai area of Birmal tehsil in Lower South Waziristan early this morning.
Wana’s Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Asghar Ali Shah told Dawn over the phone that multiple classrooms and the boundary wall were extensively damaged in the blast. He confirmed that the police have initiated an investigation into the incident.
Police said that a few days earlier, armed men had targeted the same school with explosive materials. In the previous incident, two classrooms, three washrooms, and one side of the boundary wall were completely destroyed, severely disrupting academic activities.
According to local sources, repeated attacks on the school have created serious concern among students and teachers, with parents expressing apprehension regarding their children’s education. Local elders have urged the government and relevant authorities to ensure the security of educational institutions and take strict action against those responsible.
A view of the damaged school building in Lower South Waziristan on Mar 4. — via AK Wazir
