Taliban Reject Pakistan’s Claims Over Deadly Bannu Police Attack

Taliban authorities in Kabul on Tuesday rejected accusations from Pakistan that a deadly suicide attack on a police outpost in northwestern Pakistan had been planned from Afghan territory, deepening tensions between the neighbouring countries over cross-border militancy.

The response came after Pakistani officials blamed Afghanistan-based militants for the weekend assault on a police station in Bannu that killed 15 police officers and injured several others.

Afghan government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid dismissed the allegations in a statement posted on his official X account.

“The Afghan government considers the recent statements by Pakistani officials, which claimed that the attack on the police station in Bannu was planned in Afghanistan, baseless,” Mujahid said.

The attack, one of the deadliest in the region in recent months, destroyed much of the police post after militants allegedly rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into the compound before opening fire on officers inside.

Pakistani officials said 15 bodies were recovered from the collapsed structure, while several wounded personnel were rushed to nearby hospitals. Authorities also declared an emergency at government hospitals in the area to deal with casualties.

A Pakistani security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said militants ambushed reinforcements sent to assist officers at the station, causing additional casualties during the operation. Officials also claimed attackers used drones during the assault, highlighting what security agencies described as increasingly sophisticated militant tactics.

Responsibility for the attack was claimed by a militant alliance known as Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen.

The incident has once again strained already fragile relations between Islamabad and Kabul. Pakistan has repeatedly accused the Taliban-led Afghan government of failing to prevent militants from using Afghan soil to launch attacks inside Pakistan. Afghan authorities have consistently denied those claims and insist that Pakistan’s security challenges are internal matters.

Cross-border violence has intensified over the past year, particularly along the mountainous frontier separating the two countries. The worst clashes erupted earlier this year after Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan targeted what Islamabad described as militant hideouts.

Although large-scale fighting has eased since then, sporadic border skirmishes and militant attacks continue to raise fears of renewed instability in the region.

Security analysts say the Bannu attack is likely to increase pressure on both governments to improve border coordination and intelligence sharing, although mistrust between the two sides remains high.

Pakistan’s northwestern provinces, especially Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, have experienced a sharp rise in militant violence since the collapse of ceasefire agreements between Islamabad and armed groups operating near the Afghan border.

The latest exchange of accusations threatens to complicate diplomatic efforts aimed at reducing tensions between the neighbouring countries, as both sides continue to trade blame over the growing security crisis along their shared frontier.