Pakistan says it struck militant hideouts along Afghan border after surge in deadly attacks

Pakistan said early Sunday it carried out strikes along the border with Afghanistan, targeting hideouts of Pakistani militants it blames for recent attacks.

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan said early Sunday it carried out strikes along the border with Afghanistan, targeting hideouts of Pakistani militants it blames for recent attacks inside the country.

Islamabad did not say in precisely which areas the strikes were carried out or provide other details.

In Kabul, Afghan government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said Pakistan carried out strikes inside Afghanistan. In a post on X, Mujahid said the strikes targeted civilians in Nangarhar and Paktika provinces, killing and wounding dozens of people, including women and children.

Mujahid accused Pakistan's military of carrying out the strikes to compensate for what he described as security weaknesses inside the country.

In comments before dawn Sunday, Pakistan's Information Minister Attaullah Tarar wrote on X that the military conducted what he described as "intelligence-based, selective operations" against seven camps belonging to the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, and its affiliates. He said an affiliate of the Islamic State group was also targeted in the border region.