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New fighting erupted along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border early on Wednesday, with each side blaming the opposing side of initiating lethal clashes.

Pakistan's military stated that its forces had eliminated "15-20 Afghan Taliban" and wounded many in the Spin Boldak district border district.

A Afghan authorities representative said that 12 non-combatants had been fatally struck and more than 100 injured by artillery from Pakistan. He added that numerous Pakistani soldiers had been lost their lives. None of the alleged fatalities could be independently confirmed.

Violence between the neighbouring countries has escalated since explosions rocked Afghanistan last week, which Kabul blamed on Pakistan. The Afghan leadership deny allegations that it is sheltering armed groups targeting Pakistan.

Online Platforms and Military Confrontations

The two sides are not only fighting for the advantage on the frontier, but also on digital platforms, trying to persuade the public that their faction is causing greater losses.

The latest fighting come after intense cross-border confrontations over the past few days, when the Afghan forces claimed to have eliminated fifty-eight members of the Islamabad's armed forces and Pakistan reported it neutralized two hundred "militants and linked terrorists". The reported casualty figures announced by each side could not be independently verified.

Several days of fragile peace that had lasted since the recent days were broken on Wednesday.

Local Accounts and Impact

Videos allegedly of the conflict and its aftereffects have been shared online and on messaging groups, including images said to be of those killed and blurry shots from night vision cameras claiming to be of check posts demolished. These videos have not been verified.

A source in the border area in Afghanistan reported that fighting broke out at around 4 a.m. local time (11:30 p.m. GMT on Tuesday). Another local in the district, who lives about one kilometre away from the border crossing, said that "intense hostilities continued for almost several hours".

"We observed unmanned aircraft and jets soaring over us, a number of our family members are wounded," they said.

A medical professional in one of the medical facilities in Spin Boldak stated that he tallied "7 bodies and 36 wounded transported to the hospital", including men, women and children.

The circumstances were "strained" and additional casualties were being taken to hospital, he said.

Evacuations and International Responses

A local Taliban official in Spin Boldak stated that "hundreds of households have been forced to flee since last night due to the intense fighting". He said they were on "maximum readiness" after a few military positions were targeted by aircraft from Pakistan. He added that they had the remains of 2 armed forces members.

In a separate night-time clash on the north-western border, the Pakistani military claimed that twenty-five to thirty Taliban and local insurgent fighters were "believed" to have been eliminated.

The hostilities have prompted appeals for reduced tensions from foreign nations including China and Moscow, as well as a suggestion from US President Donald Trump that he could step in to broker peace.

On Wednesday, Richard Bennett, UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, wrote on X that he was "deeply concerned" by accounts of non-combatant deaths and evacuations because of the fighting.

"I urge all parties to practice the utmost caution, safeguard civilians, and follow international law," he wrote.

Historical Disputes

Pakistan has long alleged the Afghan Taliban of permitting the Pakistani militants to operate from their land and battle against the Pakistani administration in an effort to enforce a strict Islamic-led system of governance.

The Taliban leadership has always denied these allegations.