Pakistan intercepts Afghan drones after airspace incursion PHOTO

Pakistan’s armed forces shot down eight drones launched by the Afghan Taliban after they entered Pakistani airspace near the Torkham border and Kohat, security sources said.

The sources said the drones were intercepted by air defence systems, which they described as “active and vigilant.” Four drones were reportedly downed near the Torkham border, while the remaining four were shot down near Kohat, Dawn reports.

“The armed forces and the ‘Shaheens’ of the Pakistan Air Force professionally thwarted the Afghan Taliban regime’s cowardly attempt to target public areas,” the security sources said.

Earlier, they said two “rudimentary” drones had been brought down using “soft skill” methods around seven kilometres from Kohat city. The air defence systems remained on round-the-clock alert against “all threats from Kharjistan”, they added.

“This incursion serves as yet another proof of the Afghan Taliban regime’s direct support and patronage of terrorists,” the sources said, adding that the wreckage of the destroyed drones was being recovered.

The reported incursion came two days after Pakistan conducted “calibrated” airstrikes against alleged terrorist hideouts and safe havens in Afghanistan’s border region in response to recent attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). Pakistan’s Information Ministry said more than 28 terrorists were killed, describing Afghanistan as a continuing “hub of terrorism” and saying the “threat to Pakistan emanates from Afghanistan”.

Tensions between Islamabad and Kabul have remained high, with repeated cross-border clashes and accusations over militant activity. Pakistan has urged the Taliban administration to dismantle terrorist sanctuaries on Afghan soil, particularly those linked to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

A UN Security Council-mandated monitoring report covering December 16, 2025, to June 9, 2026, said the Afghan Taliban’s continued support for the TTP had contributed to an increase in the frequency and lethality of terrorist attacks in Pakistan, while noting that Kabul had taken some initial steps to restrain the group.

The report also highlighted growing operational and facilitation links among the TTP, Al Qaeda, Islamic State-Khorasan (ISIL-K) and the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA).

By Vafa Guliyeva