Pakistani media outlets, including Geo News and Radio Pakistan, have reported that eight Taliban fighters were killed and 16 others wounded in a recent border clash with Pakistani forces.
Citing security sources, the reports claim that two senior Taliban commanders were among those killed in the exchange of fire.
The Taliban's Ministry of Defence is yet to comment on the incident or confirm the reported casualties.
Local sources informed Afghanistan International that the skirmish occurred for the second time in a week in the Zazi Maidan district of Khost province, in which both sides reportedly used heavy weaponry during the confrontation.
According to Geo News and Radio Pakistan, the Taliban allegedly launched an attack on Pakistani military checkpoints. Afghan sources also reported that a Taliban-fired mortar shell struck a security post in Kurram Agency, injuring five individuals, including a Pakistani military officer.
The Pakistani military has not confirmed any casualties among its personnel.
State-run Radio Pakistan accused the Afghan Taliban of aiding "terrorist attacks against Pakistan" and "violating internationally recognised borders”.
Afghanistan does not recognise the Durand Line as an official border, referring to it as a "hypothetical line”. The lack of an agreed-upon border between the two countries has been cited as a major factor in the recurring border clashes between Taliban and Pakistani forces.
In the last three years, Taliban and Pakistani forces have clashed multiple times, often over disputes regarding the construction of security posts along the border.
