Pakistan carried out airstrikes inside Afghanistan early Monday, hitting locations in Kunar and Paktika provinces and triggering a fresh escalation between the neighbouring countries after nearly three months of relative calm.

Afghanistan's Taliban government said at least three civilians from the same family were killed when a house was struck in Kunar province. Four other family members were injured.

Pakistan's government later said its operation killed at least 28 militants in the Afghanistan Pakistan border region.

The competing accounts of those targeted and killed have not been independently reconciled.

The United Nations mission in Afghanistan confirmed that at least three civilians were killed and four others injured in apparent airstrikes in Kunar.

FAMILY KILLED IN KUNAR

Afghan deputy government spokesperson Hamdullah Fitrat said a house in Kunar province was hit during the strikes.

Three members of the same family were killed and four others wounded, according to the Taliban government.

The strike occurred in Nurgal district in the early hours of Monday.

Afghan authorities described those killed as civilians.

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan separately confirmed at least three civilian deaths, including a man, a woman and a girl, as well as four injuries.

PAKTIKA LOCATIONS ALSO BOMBED

The strikes also extended to Paktika province near the Pakistani border.

According to Fitrat, two locations in Barmal district were bombed.

One shop and an unoccupied house were destroyed, but no casualties were reported there.

The strikes mark another significant escalation along the increasingly volatile border between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

PAKISTAN SAYS 28 MILITANTS KILLED

Pakistan's government later said at least 28 militants had been killed in the operation.

A Pakistani official also confirmed that Kunar and Paktika provinces had been targeted.

Pakistan's military had not immediately issued a detailed public statement on the strikes.

The difference between Islamabad's account and the Afghan government's description of civilian casualties remains central to the developing story.

TALIBAN GOVERNMENT VOWS RESPONSE

Afghanistan's Taliban government strongly condemned the strikes.

Chief government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said Afghanistan would respond to what he described as aggression against Afghan territory.

The warning raises the possibility of renewed cross border confrontation after several months of relative calm.

Relations between Islamabad and Kabul have deteriorated significantly over militant activity along their shared border.

STRIKES FOLLOW DEADLY ATTACKS IN PAKISTAN

Monday's airstrikes came after a series of deadly attacks against Pakistani security forces.

A police facility in Kohat in northwestern Pakistan was attacked by Islamist militants on Friday, killing at least 24 people, according to Reuters.

Another confrontation on Sunday in neighbouring Hangu district killed six Pakistani soldiers and eight militants, according to Pakistan's military.

Pakistan has repeatedly accused armed groups of using territory inside Afghanistan to organise and launch attacks across the border.

Afghanistan's Taliban government denies harbouring anti Pakistan militants and says Pakistan's security problems should be addressed within Pakistan.

TENSIONS HAVE ESCALATED THROUGHOUT 2026

Relations between the two countries have been particularly strained this year.

Cross border fighting intensified earlier in 2026, with airstrikes, drone attacks and artillery exchanges causing significant casualties.

The two sides had experienced nearly three months of relative calm before Monday's strikes.

Pakistan has previously targeted locations inside Afghanistan that it says are used by militant organisations.

Afghan authorities have repeatedly accused Pakistan of violating the country's sovereignty and causing civilian casualties.

RISK OF FURTHER ESCALATION

Monday's strikes once again raise concerns about a broader confrontation between the neighbouring countries.

Afghanistan has already warned that it intends to respond.

Pakistan, meanwhile, maintains that militant groups operating from Afghan territory pose a direct threat to its national security.

With the two governments presenting sharply different accounts of the targets and casualties, attention is now focused on whether the strikes trigger another round of cross border military action.