Five Armed Militants Killed in Failed Cross-Border Incursion from Pakistan into Afghanistan’s Badakhshan Province

KABUL, Afghanistan – Afghan border forces have repelled a late-night infiltration attempt by a group of armed militants seeking to enter northeastern Badakhshan province from across the disputed Durand Line, resulting in the deaths of at least five assailants, local military officials confirmed on Friday.

The Afghan National Army’s 219th Omar-e-Salis Division reported that the incursion occurred on Thursday night in the remote mountainous terrain of Zebak district, a volatile border area that has seen sporadic militant activity in recent years. The group was intercepted as it attempted to cross through the Shah Salim corridor in Pakistan’s Chitral region, a known transit route that has historically been used for smuggling and insurgent movement.

According to Brigadier General Noorullah Nazari, the division’s spokesman, Afghan border guards stationed at the Topkhana zero-point a strategic border observation post detected the armed contingent moving under the cover of darkness. Troops engaged the group in a brief but intense firefight, forcing them to abandon their advance.

“Our forces were fully alert and responded decisively to prevent any breach of sovereignty,” Nazari stated in a press release. “The enemy suffered heavy casualties and was unable to penetrate even a meter into Afghan territory.”

The official statement confirmed that five of the militants were killed in the exchange, while an unspecified number of others sustained wounds. Following the clash, the surviving members of the group retreated in disarray, withdrawing back across the divide to the Shah Salim area on the Pakistani side of the Durand Line.

No Afghan security personnel were reported injured in the operation. Authorities have not yet disclosed the specific affiliation of the armed group, though Badakhshan—which shares porous borders with Tajikistan, China, and Pakistan has occasionally been a transit point for both regional insurgents and foreign fighters. The province has also seen increased militant activity linked to the Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) and Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in recent months.

The Durand Line, a 2,600-kilometer frontier drawn by British colonial powers in 1893, remains a flashpoint between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Kabul has never formally recognized the boundary, and cross-border skirmishes are frequent, with each side accusing the other of harboring militant elements.

Local tribal elders in Zebak have been urged to cooperate with security forces in monitoring movement along the frontier, as Afghan authorities intensify patrols ahead of the spring thaw, which typically coincides with an uptick in militant crossings.

The Afghan Defense Ministry has praised the rapid response of the 219th Division and reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding national territorial integrity, vowing to pursue any remaining elements that may attempt future incursions.

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