Tarar says forces destroyed 242 checkpoints and hit 64 sites across Afghanistan in airstrikes
A Pakistani army soldier stands guard at a border terminal in Ghulam Khan, a town in North Waziristan on the Pakistan-Afghan border. Photo: AFP
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Sunday that 583 Afghan Taliban were killed and more than 795 injured during Operation Ghazab lil-Haq, launched in response to what Islamabad described as “unprovoked action” from across the Afghan border.
Operation Ghazab lil-Haq was launched last week following renewed clashes along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, after Afghan Taliban forces fired on several locations, provoking swift military retaliation from Pakistan.
Since then, neighboring countries have engaged in an escalation of hostilities along the border. The clashes intensified after Afghanistan launched a border offensive in response to previous Pakistani airstrikes targeting terrorist positions.
✅Operation Ghazb little Haq
✅Updated at 4:00 p.m. March 8✅Summary of Afghan Taliban losses
▪️583 killed,
▪️795+ injured
▪️242 checkpoints destroyed
▪️38 messages captured and destroyed
▪️213 tanks, armored vehicles and artillery guns destroyed
▪️64 locations across Afghanistan…– Attaullah Tarar (@TararAttaullah) March 8, 2026
Taking stock of the Afghan Taliban regime’s losses at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Tarar said security forces destroyed 242 checkpoints and captured 38 others during the operation.
“213 tanks, armored vehicles and artillery pieces were also destroyed during the operation,” he said.
The minister added that 64 sites across Afghanistan were effectively targeted by airstrikes as part of the campaign.
Separately, the Pakistani army foiled an infiltration attempt along the Pakistan-Afghan border near the Chaman sector, security sources said, as forces continued operations to protect the border fence and prevent terrorist crossings, according to state television. Radio Pakistan reported.
According to security officials, a group of three or four terrorists attempted to cross the fence in the border area adjacent to Chaman. Troops reacted quickly and targeted the group as they attempted to cross the barrier.
During the operation, an exchange of fire took place in which one terrorist was killed, while the other attackers fled the area injured, the sources said.
“The army effectively targeted the Khwarij who were trying to cut the fence,” the security sources said.
The officials added that four to five improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and fence cutting equipment were recovered from the militants at the site.
The latest escalation in tensions between the two countries follows a series of retaliatory actions over the past year.
Pakistan had earlier carried out airstrikes against camps of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Islamic State’s Khorasan province in Afghanistan after a wave of attacks in Pakistan, including a suicide bombing in Islamabad.
Learn more: 13 terrorists killed in intelligence operations in KP
Pakistani security sources said more than 80 terrorists were killed in the strikes. The strikes provoked attacks from Afghanistan along the border, leading to the outbreak of the latest round of open conflict.
Islamabad has long maintained that TTP leaders operate from Afghan territory, an allegation that Kabul has repeatedly denied.
Tensions also increased after a series of explosions in Kabul on October 9 last year. Taliban forces then targeted areas along the Pakistani border, prompting Islamabad to respond with cross-border bombings. The exchanges caused casualties and damage to infrastructure on both sides and led to the suspension of trade after the closure of border crossings on October 12, 2025.
