5 soldiers, 25 militants killed in fresh clashes near Afghan border amid fragile ceasefire: Pakistan military

Five Pakistani soldiers and 25 militants were killed in fresh clashes near the Afghanistan border, the Pakistani military said on Sunday (October 26, 2025), amid a fragile ceasefire with the Afghan Taliban.

The violence came even as delegations from both Afghanistan and Pakistan met in Istanbul to ease tensions following the deadliest border fighting in years.

As claimed by Pakistan’s military, militants attempted to cross from Afghanistan into Kurram and North Waziristan districts on Friday and Saturday — rugged areas along the country’s northwestern frontier.

The army’s media wing told Reuters that the infiltrations raised questions about “the intentions of the government in Afghanistan in regards to addressing the issue of terrorism emanating from its soil.”

Earlier, Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said on Saturday that the truce between the two sides was holding and expressed hope that Afghanistan wanted peace. “But failure to reach an agreement in Istanbul would mean open war,” he warned.

The Taliban government has not yet responded to Islamabad’s latest claims. It denies harboring militants and accuses Pakistan of violating Afghan sovereignty through its military operations.

Officials from both countries are meeting in Istanbul to develop mechanisms for maintaining stability outlined during earlier Doha talks.

The recent clashes, which also killed civilians, marked the worst violence along the border since the Taliban’s 2021 takeover of Kabul. The confrontation began after explosions in central Kabul, which the Taliban blamed on Pakistan, prompting retaliatory strikes along the frontier.

The blasts coincided with a rare visit by the Taliban’s foreign minister to India. Pakistan, once a key supporter of the Taliban, has seen relations with Kabul deteriorate sharply in recent months.