Pakistan-Afghanistan War: Kabul Threatens ‘Hand Can Reach Their Necks’ as Islamabad Declares Open War

Kabul February 28, 2026 — The long-simmering border tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan have escalated into a full-scale regional conflict, with the Afghan Ministry of Defense issuing a chilling warning on X (formerly Twitter) that “Islamabad is burning” and “this war is not going to stop.”

The social media post, which surfaced following a series of devastating Pakistani airstrikes on Kabul, Kandahar, and Paktia, marks a definitive break in diplomatic relations after Pakistan’s Defense Minister, Khawaja Asif, officially declared a state of “open war” against the Taliban regime.

The escalating rhetoric follows a massive military operation launched by the Pakistan Armed Forces, codenamed “Operation Ghazab lil-Haq” (Wrath for Truth), in retaliation for what Islamabad describes as unprovoked cross-border attacks.

High-ranking Taliban officials responded with defiance, stating that Pakistan has made a “very big mistake” and claiming that Afghan drone units and ground forces have already neutralized over 55 Pakistani soldiers and captured several border posts.

The humanitarian and security situation in the region has reached a critical tipping point as both nations trade heavy fire across the 2,600 km-long Durand Line. While Islamabad claims its “precision strikes” targeted only military headquarters and ammunition depots to “crush” terrorist infrastructure, the Taliban government reported civilian casualties and the downing of a Pakistani fighter jet in Jalalabad, where the pilot was reportedly captured alive.

In Islamabad, security has been heightened to its maximum level following a series of suicide bombings earlier this month, which the Pakistani government directly links to Afghan-based training camps.

As the international community, led by Qatar and the United Nations, calls for an immediate ceasefire, the rhetoric from Kabul remains increasingly aggressive; a Taliban spokesperson warned that their “hand can reach the necks” of their adversaries, suggesting that the conflict may soon move beyond the border and into the heart of Pakistan’s capital.(with the Input of Agencies)