Deadly clashes reported along Kurram border

Afghan Taliban forces opened fire in the Taida sector of Upper Kurram and the Ghuzgarhi border area on October 17, 2026, security sources said, and the Pakistan Army retaliated with artillery and heavy weapons against the Topsar post and Shipola base camp. Sources said the Shipola base camp was reportedly destroyed and that Taliban personnel abandoned a border post. PICSS recorded 225 militant attacks in Pakistan in September 2026, compared with 199 in August, a 13% increase that marked the highest monthly total in 12 years. The Ministry of Information said on October 1 that Pakistan had conducted aerial strikes in Afghanistan under Operation Ghazab lil-Haq earlier that month. At the Pakistan Military Academy Kakul passing-out parade, Commander of National Strategic Command Syed Aamer Raza issued a warning against miscalculation and said, "Let no adversary mistake our commitment to peace as weakness nor misinterpret our restraint as a lack of resolve." CONTESTED: Security sources said Taliban fighters were killed. One report said two Pakistani soldiers were killed. A missile reportedly struck a civilian area in Pewar, with damage details not immediately available.