Pakistan Strikes Afghan Border Camps After Deadly Suicide Bombings

[00:00] Vanessa Calderon: Today is Sunday, February 22nd, 2026. [00:04] Vanessa Calderon: From Neural Newscasts, I'm Thomas Keene. [00:07] Vanessa Calderon: And I'm Vanessa Calderon. [00:09] Vanessa Calderon: Today, Pakistan launches airstrikes against militant hideouts in Afghanistan [00:15] Vanessa Calderon: following a surge in cross-border violence. [00:17] Vanessa Calderon: We look at the rising diplomatic tensions as Kabul reports civilian casualties from the overnight operations. [00:26] Vanessa Calderon: And we examine the evidence cited by Islamabad linking recent domestic terror attacks to leadership-based in Afghan territory. [00:34] Vanessa Calderon: This escalation comes as international pressure mounts for the Taliban to uphold counterterrorism commitments. [00:41] Vanessa Calderon: Pakistan conducted intelligence-based operations on Saturday night, targeting seven militant camps across the border in Afghanistan. [00:51] Vanessa Calderon: The Information Ministry says these selective strikes hit Tehrik and Taliban Pakistan sites. [00:57] Vanessa Calderon: They say it is a response to a string of deadly attacks. [01:02] Vanessa Calderon: Afghan officials in Nangarhar and Pakhtika provinces report that the bombing killed and wounded dozens of people. [01:09] Vanessa Calderon: Government spokesperson Zabi Hula Mujahid claims the strikes targeted civilian areas and included [01:16] Vanessa Calderon: women and children among the victims. [01:18] Vanessa Calderon: This military action follows a suicide bombing in the Bajar district earlier this week that [01:24] Vanessa Calderon: killed 11 soldiers and one child. [01:27] Vanessa Calderon: Authorities identified the attacker as an Afghan national who ramped an explosive-laden [01:33] Vanessa Calderon: vehicle into a security post. [01:35] Vanessa Calderon: The military warned after that incident, it would no longer exercise restraint against those responsible, regardless of their location. [01:43] Vanessa Calderon: Hours before the border strikes, another suicide bomber targeted a security convoy in the Banu district, killing two soldiers. [01:51] Vanessa Calderon: In other news, information minister Atala Tarar says Pakistan has conclusive evidence linking recent events to handlers in Afghanistan. [02:01] Vanessa Calderon: He specifically cited a suicide bombing at an Islamabad mosque that killed 31 worshippers earlier this month. [02:10] Vanessa Calderon: Relations between the two nations have been simmering since the Taliban returned to power [02:14] Vanessa Calderon: in 2021. [02:16] Vanessa Calderon: While the TTP is a separate entity, Islamabad maintains the operate from Afghan soil with [02:23] Vanessa Calderon: the help of local leadership. [02:24] Vanessa Calderon: Meanwhile, Pakistan is urging the international community to hold the Afghan government to [02:30] Vanessa Calderon: its Doha Agreement promises. [02:32] Vanessa Calderon: Those commitments require the Taliban to prevent any group from using Afghan territory to launch attacks against other countries. [02:41] Vanessa Calderon: Kabul continues to deny that the TTP operates from within its borders, despite mounting evidence to the contrary. [02:49] Vanessa Calderon: Mujahid suggested that Pakistan is using these strikes to compensate for its own internal security weaknesses. [02:56] Vanessa Calderon: Next, we look at the broader regional impact, as these strikes marked the second major cross-border operation since October. [03:04] Vanessa Calderon: While a Qatar-mediated ceasefire has generally held, recent diplomatic talks in Istanbul failed to produce a formal agreement. [03:13] Vanessa Calderon: The lack of a formal peace deal means we are likely to see more of these intelligence-based [03:18] Vanessa Calderon: operations in the future. [03:20] Vanessa Calderon: As both sides dig in their heels, the security situation along the border remains incredibly [03:27] Vanessa Calderon: volatile. [03:27] Vanessa Calderon: I'm Thomas Kean. [03:28] Thomas Keane: And I'm Vanessa Calderon. [03:30] Thomas Keane: Neural Newscast is AI-assisted, human-reviewed. [03:33] Thomas Keane: View our AI transparency policy at neuralnewscast.com. [03:38] Vanessa Calderon: Neural Newscast uses artificial intelligence in content creation [03:41] Vanessa Calderon: with human editorial review prior to publication. [03:45] Vanessa Calderon: While we strive for factual, unbiased reporting, [03:48] Vanessa Calderon: AI-assisted content may occasionally contain errors. [03:51] Vanessa Calderon: Verify critical information with trusted sources. [03:54] Vanessa Calderon: Learn more at neuralnewscast.com.