The Kabul Tribune (KT) — Pakistan's Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said a rudimentary drone allegedly launched by Afghanistan's Taliban rulers entered Pakistani airspace and was shot down by the country's air defense system, rejecting Taliban claims that they had carried out strikes against Islamic State group targets inside Pakistan.
In a statement, the ministry said the drone entered Pakistani airspace near Shinko in the northwestern Khyber district and was "immediately identified and neutralized" by the Pakistan Air Force's air defense system.
The statement came after Afghanistan's Taliban-led Defense Ministry announced that it had conducted strikes against what it described as Islamic State-linked sites in Pakistan's Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces.
According to the Taliban ministry, the targeted locations were allegedly being used to plan attacks inside Afghanistan with the support of certain intelligence networks.
The ministry said operations targeted sites in the Gulistan area of Qila Abdullah district and the Shakarab area of Chaghi district in Balochistan province. It also claimed to have struck an Islamic State site in the Qambar Khel area of Orakzai district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The Taliban said the locations served as centers for the movement and coordination of militants and that the identified targets were successfully hit.
Pakistan rejected the claims.
"The Afghan Taliban regime, through various propaganda mouthpieces and official statements, is claiming to have targeted alleged ISKP camps in border areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan using rudimentary drones," the Information Ministry said. "These claims are false as usual."
The ministry alleged that camps belonging to the Islamic State group, also known as ISKP, and more than two dozen other militant organizations are operating from territory controlled by the Taliban government in Afghanistan.
It accused the Taliban administration of supporting militant groups active in neighboring countries and the broader region and said the Afghan authorities use such statements to deflect attention from those allegations.
The Taliban government has repeatedly denied allowing Afghan territory to be used for attacks against other countries.
The latest exchange of accusations comes amid heightened tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan over border security and militant activity. Islamabad has repeatedly blamed the Taliban administration for failing to curb armed groups operating from Afghan soil, while Kabul has rejected the allegations and accused Pakistan of making unfounded claims.
There was no independent confirmation of either side's claims, and the reported strikes and drone incident could not immediately be verified.
