ISLAMABAD/PESHAWAR: Pakistan and Afghanistan announced a temporary ceasefire on Wednesday after some of the heaviest cross-border fighting in recent years, the foreign office in Islamabad said, after Pakistani forces hit Afghan Taliban strongholds in Kandahar in what state media described as “precision strikes.”

Pakistan’s military said earlier in the day it had repelled coordinated attacks by Afghan Taliban fighters at multiple points along the shared border in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces, saying Kabul’s forces had destroyed a key trade gate and endangering civilians. The clashes came days after deadly border fighting between the two neighbors in which Pakistan said 23 of its soldiers were killed, while Afghan authorities claimed to have killed 58 Pakistani troops.

Relations between Islamabad and Kabul have sharply deteriorated in recent years, with Pakistan accusing the Afghan Taliban of sheltering fighters from the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and allowing them to stage cross-border attacks from Afghan soil. Kabul denies the allegation, saying it does not permit its territory to be used against other countries.

The escalation has strained already frayed ties, coming as Afghanistan’s foreign minister visited archrival India. Pakistan views New Delhi’s growing influence in Afghanistan as a regional security threat, given their long-standing rivalry.

“The Pakistani government and the Afghan Taliban regime have, at the Taliban’s request and with mutual consent, decided to implement a temporary ceasefire for 48 hours starting at 6 p.m. today,” the foreign office said in a brief statement.

“During this period, both sides will make a sincere effort to find a constructive solution to this complex yet resolvable issue through meaningful dialogue,” it added.

Prior to the announcement, Pakistan Television said the military had carried out “precision strikes” in Kandahar and Kabul on Afghan Taliban and TTP hideouts.

It said “all these targets were carefully selected, isolated from civilian populations and successfully destroyed.”

The report added that centers linked to Baloch separatist militants and their leadership were also targeted in Kabul.

The military’s media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), had said Wednesday morning Afghan Taliban fighters had launched a “cowardly attack” at four locations in the Spin Boldak area of Balochistan.

“The attack was effectively repulsed by Pakistani forces,” the ISPR said.

The statement said the attacks were coordinated with members of “Fitna Al-Khawarij,” a term Pakistan uses for militants linked to the TTP and which Islamabad claims are backed by Afghanistan and India — both of which deny the charge.

The ISPR said 15–20 Afghan Taliban fighters were killed in Spin Boldak and another 25–30 in Kurram district, where Pakistani troops destroyed eight Taliban posts and six tanks in what it called a “proportionate response.”

Afghan officials, meanwhile, said 15 civilians were killed and dozens wounded in the fresh clashes.

“The insinuations that the attack was initiated by Pakistan are outrageous and blatant lies, just like the claims of capturing Pakistani posts or equipment,” the ISPR said, calling Taliban statements “propaganda debunked with basic fact checks.”

It added: “The armed forces stand resolute and fully prepared to defend the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Pakistan. All acts of aggression against Pakistan will be responded to with full force.”

Cross-border trade remained suspended during the day as officials on both sides confirmed military reinforcements had been deployed around Chaman and Spin Boldak.

Tensions have worsened since 2023, when Pakistan began deporting hundreds of thousands of undocumented Afghans, a move it said was necessary to curb terrorism and smuggling. By 2025, more than 800,000 Afghans had been repatriated or forced out, according to government figures.

India’s deepening engagement with the Taliban, including reopening its embassy in Kabul last week, has further heightened Islamabad’s concerns.

Regional powers, including Saudi Arabia, have called for restraint and renewed dialogue to prevent the escalating hostilities from destabilizing South Asia.