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New hostilities erupted along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border early on Wednesday, with both parties blaming the opposing side of starting lethal clashes.

The Pakistani armed forces announced that its troops had eliminated "15-20 Afghan Taliban" and injured numerous others in the Spin Boldak frontier area.

A Afghan authorities representative said that 12 Afghan civilians had been killed and over a hundred wounded by artillery from Pakistan. He further stated that numerous Pakistani soldiers had been lost their lives. Not one of the reported deaths could be independently confirmed.

Hostilities between the neighbouring countries has escalated since explosions rocked Afghanistan last week, which the Afghan capital blamed on Pakistan. The Afghan leadership deny claims that it is harboring militants targeting Pakistan.

Social Media and Armed Confrontations

The two sides are not only battling for the upper hand on the border, but also on social media, attempting to convince the general population that their side is inflicting more damage.

The latest clashes come after severe border hostilities over the past few days, when the Afghan forces claimed to have eliminated fifty-eight members of the Pakistani military and Pakistan said it killed two hundred "militants and affiliated insurgents". The claimed casualty figures provided by both parties could not be independently verified.

A few days of fragile peace that had lasted since the weekend were broken on Wednesday morning.

Local Reports and Consequences

Footage purportedly of the conflict and its aftermath have been circulated online and on messaging groups, including footage claiming to be of those deceased and blurry shots from night vision cameras claiming to be of guard positions demolished. These videos have not been authenticated.

A source in Spin Boldak in Afghanistan stated that fighting erupted at around 4 a.m. local time (23:30 GMT on the previous day). Another resident in the district, who lives about a short distance away from the border crossing, said that "very heavy hostilities persisted for almost five hours".

"I see drones and jets flying over us, some of our family members are wounded," they said.

A doctor in one of the hospitals in Spin Boldak reported that he tallied "seven fatalities and 36 injured transported to the medical center", including men, women and minors.

The circumstances were "tense" and more victims were being taken to hospital, he said.

Displacement and Global Reactions

A local Taliban official in the area stated that "numerous of families have been forced to flee since the previous evening due to the intense fighting". He said they were on "high alert" after a few military positions were attacked by aircraft from Pakistan. He added that they had the bodies of 2 Pakistani military 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 killed.

The hostilities have led to appeals for de-escalation from other countries including China and Moscow, as well as a suggestion from the American leader that he could intervene to facilitate peace.

On Wednesday, a UN official, UN special rapporteur on the conditions of civil liberties in Afghanistan, posted on X that he was "deeply concerned" by reports of civilian casualties and displacement because of the clashes.

"I call on all parties to exercise maximum restraint, safeguard non-combatants, and abide by international law," he stated.

Long-Standing Tensions

Islamabad has long alleged the Taliban authorities of allowing the Pakistan Taliban to function from their territory and fight against the Islamabad government in an effort to impose a strict religion-based system of rule.

The Taliban leadership has consistently rejected these allegations.