Islamabad, 25 December 2024 (dpa/MIA) - At least 46 people, including children and women, have been killed in Pakistani airstrikes conducted overnight on Afghanistan's Paktika province, according to Afghan authorities.

Taliban deputy government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat told dpa that the strikes targeted four locations in the Barmal district of the province, killing mostly children and women. He added that six others were wounded.

The Afghan Defence Ministry condemned the bombing, calling it a "barbaric act" and a "clear aggression." The ministry added that the victims were refugees from the Waziristan region in Pakistan.

"The Islamic Emirate will not let this act of cowardice go unanswered, rather, it considers defending its territory and soil an inalienable right," the ministry said.

Pakistani sources claimed that the airstrikes targeted suspected Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militant hideouts.

Pakistan conducted similar airstrikes in Afghanistan's border provinces earlier this year. Islamabad accuses the Afghan Taliban of supporting the Pakistani Taliban, a charge Kabul denies.

The airstrikes occurred while Pakistan's special envoy for Afghanistan, Mohammad Sadiq, was meeting with Afghan authorities in Kabul to discuss bilateral trade and improving ties.

Pakistan has seen a rise in militant attacks since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in August 2021.

MIA file photo