On Friday, Pakistani and Afghan armed forces traded fire along the shared border, media reported citing regional authorities in Afghanistan. 

A spokesperson for the governor of the Afghan province of Khost, Mustaghfir Gurbaz, accused Pakistani troops of firing mortars at three settlements, TOLO News reported. He said Afghan forces fired back.

No casualties were reported.

Tensions on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border escalated after Pakistan fired airstrikes at the western Afghan province of Paktika in late December, killing over 50 people and injuring 40 others.

In response, Afghanistan's Ministry of Defense condemned the strikes, calling them "barbaric" and a "clear aggression".

"The Islamic Emirate will not leave this cowardly act unanswered, but rather considers the defense of its territory and sovereignty to be its inalienable right," the statement stressed, using the Taliban authorities' name for the government.

A resident, Maleel, told AFP that the air strikes killed 18 members of one family, with the bombs hitting two or three houses.

Another strike killed three people in a different house and wounded several others, who were taken to a hospital, he added.

A flashback

The deadly air strikes follow earlier incidents in March when Pakistan's military airstrikes reportedly killed eight Afghan civilians, which led to skirmishes along the border.

Tensions between Pakistan and the Taliban government have escalated since the Taliban took power in 2021. Pakistan has accused the Taliban of sheltering militants who carry out attacks in Pakistan, although Kabul denies these allegations.

The air strike comes after a raid by the Pakistani Taliban, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), last week on a Pakistani army outpost near the Afghan border, which Pakistani officials say killed 16 soldiers.