KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) 鈥� Mortars and missiles fired from Pakistan on Monday struck a university and civilian homes in northeastern Afghanistan, killing seven people and wounding at least 85, Afghan officials said. Pakistan denied the accusation of targeting a university.
The strikes were the first violent incident since between the two sides earlier this month.
Pakistan and Afghanistan had been embroiled in that has killed hundreds of people since late February, when on Pakistan in retaliation for Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan. Islamabad had declared it was in open war with Afghanistan, in an escalation of violence that alarmed the international community.
Pakistan鈥檚 Ministry of Information and Broadcasting dismissed Afghan media reports and official statements about the strikes on the university as 鈥渁 blatant lie.鈥�
Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of harboring militants that carry out deadly attacks inside Pakistan, especially the , known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP. The group is separate from, but allied with, the Afghan Taliban, which took over Afghanistan in 2021 following the chaotic withdrawal of U.S.-led troops. Kabul denies the charge.
Afghan and Pakistani officials met in Urumqi in western China in early April, and had agreed not to escalate their conflict and 鈥渆xplore a comprehensive solution,鈥� China鈥檚 government had said after mediating the talks.
Monday鈥檚 strikes marked the first major attack since the talks, highlighting the tenuous nature of peace efforts mediated by the international community. Apart from China, other nations that have been involved in mediation between the two sides at various times include Turkey, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
The fighting largely subsided in March, after the two sides for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan. The truce followed on March 17 on a drug treatment facility in the Afghan capital, Kabul, that Afghanistan said killed more than 400 civilians. Pakistan denied targeting civilian facilities and disputed the death toll.
Still, even while delegations from the two sides were attending the talks in Urumqi.
Afghan deputy government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat said Monday鈥檚 mortar and missile attack struck the city of Asadabad, the capital of Kunar Province, as well as various areas in another district in the province on Monday afternoon.
Kunar Information and Culture Director Najibullah Hanafi said the death toll stood at seven, with 85 people wounded.
Fitrat said the wounded included women, children and students at the Sayed Jamaluddin Afghani University, and described the attacks as “an unforgivable war crime, barbarity, and provocative act.鈥�
Afghanistan鈥檚 Ministry of Higher said about 30 students and professors were injured in the strike on the university, which it said had caused extensive damage to the facility鈥檚 buildings and grounds.
In a statement, Pakistan’s information ministry said that 鈥淧akistan鈥檚 targeting is precise and intelligence based. No strike has been carried out on Sayed Jamaluddin Afghan University. The claims are frivolous and fake.鈥�
On Saturday, Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Mutaqi described the recent negotiations in China as 鈥減ositive.鈥�
鈥淵ou are all aware of our recent problems with Pakistan. The latest negotiations were held in Urumqi under the mediation of China, and these negotiations were positive,鈥� he said during a graduation ceremony at the foreign ministry鈥檚 Diplomacy Institute.
The issues between the two countries 鈥渁re very sensitive between neighbors and between two Islamic neighboring countries and should not be treated irresponsibly,鈥� he added.
Earlier this month, the United Nations鈥� office for the coordination of humanitarian affairs in Afghanistan said the conflict had displaced 94,000 people overall.
___
Associated Press writers Munir Ahmed in Islamabad, Pakistan and Elena Becatoros in Athens, Greece contributed to this report.
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
