Afghan Taliban shelling kills civilian in Lower South Waziristan

One civilian was killed and five others were injured when Afghan Taliban forces fired mortar rounds at civilian homes and a market in Lower South Waziristan on the night of 27 October, the district's deputy commissioner said, an attack the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governor condemned as unprovoked aggression.

In a statement posted on X, the deputy commissioner of Lower South Waziristan said the shelling hit Angoor Adda Bazaar and houses, killing one resident and wounding five. Several shops were damaged. He said Pakistani forces deployed along the border were responding effectively and heavily.

UrduPoint also reported the shelling, putting the toll at one civilian dead and a number of people wounded.

Governor Faisal Karim Kundi condemned the attack in a statement, describing it as "unprovoked and blatant aggression" against civilian homes and the bazaar, and said he saluted the armed forces for a "swift, forceful and decisive response".

"Pakistan will never tolerate attacks on its people or violations of its sovereignty," Kundi said, adding that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had sacrificed thousands of lives in the fight against terrorism and that the armed forces had the full backing of the nation to defend every inch of the country's soil.

There was no immediate response from Kabul.

The incident came days after Islamabad pressed the Afghan Taliban government to take verifiable action against militants accused of using Afghan soil to mount attacks inside Pakistan. Kabul has consistently rejected the allegation, saying it does not allow Afghan territory to be used against any neighbour.

Pakistan has repeatedly accused Afghanistan's Taliban administration of sheltering the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan and the Baloch Liberation Army. Violence has risen sharply in Pakistan over the past several years, with authorities largely blaming the TTP and groups linked to it, and attacks on security forces have increased markedly since the Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021.

Tensions between the two countries have been heightened this year by border skirmishes and Pakistani air strikes inside Afghanistan.