India Condemns Pakistan Airstrikes In Afghanistan, Kabul Summons Pak Ambassador

India on Sunday (February 22, 2026) strongly condemned Pakistan for its airstrikes inside Afghanistan that caused massive civilian casualties, even as Kabul summoned Islamabad’s ambassador to issue a strongly-worded protest.

Describing the Pakistan airstrikes on Afghanistan an effort by Islamabad to “externalise its internal failures,” India reiterated its support to Afghanistan on its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

“India strongly condemns Pakistan’s airstrikes on Afghan territory that have resulted in civilian casualties, including women and children, during the holy month of Ramadan,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a statement.

“It is another attempt by Pakistan to externalise its internal failures. India reiterates its support for Afghanistan’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence,” he said in response to media queries on the issue.

Pakistan had claimed that its airstrikes targeted at least seven Pakistani Taliban leaders’ hideouts inside Afghanistan in response to the recent attacks on its military and other infrastructure, and claimed at least 70 militants were killed in the airstrikes.

“Afghanistan has long been exporting terrorism. Pakistan is taking all actions to secure the life and property of its citizens,” Pakistan State Minister for Interior Talal Chaudhry told a Pakistani media outlet.

Meanwhile, Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned Pakistan’s ambassador in Kabul to strongly protest what it described as Pakistani “army attacks” on Afghanistan’s eastern provinces of Nangarhar and Paktika.

In a post on X, Afghanistan’s MFA said the envoy was called in following airstrikes that it claimed resulted in “dozens” of casualties.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the IEA summoned the Pakistani Ambassador in Kabul,” the statement said. “In response to the Pakistani army’s attacks on Afghanistan’s Nangarhar and Paktika provinces, in which dozens of fellow countrymen were martyred and wounded, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the IEA summoned the Pakistani Ambassador in Kabul.”

Earlier, the International Human Rights Foundation (IHRF) raised an urgent alarm over verified reports of a devastating airstrike in the Behsud District of Afghanistan.

The foundation said a Pakistani military strike targeted a civilian home, resulting in the “massacre of at least 16 members of a single family,” in a post on its X handle.

The victims included men, women, and children, from a one-year-old infant to an 80-year-old elder, it claimed citing confirmed sources for the information. This attack represented “not just a loss of life, but the complete annihilation of a family lineage.”

While 16 family members were killed, two children miraculously survived the strike, and at least one other individual, identified as 20-year-old Riyazullah, was injured.

The deceased included 80-year-old Shahabuddin, 30-year-old Sharakat, and 40-year-old Muhmanda, alongside several other adults and multiple minors, the foundation claimed. “They are not numbers; they are human beings.”

Earlier, Pakistan’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting confirmed the strikes in retaliation for the recent suicide bombings in Islamabad, Bajaur and Bannu, even as Kabul warned of a “necessary and measured response” to the strikes.

The ministry alleged that these bombings were carried out at the direction of Afghanistan-based leadership and handlers linked to the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

Despite Islamabad’s claims that it repeatedly urged the Afghan Taliban to prevent the use of Afghan territory by terrorist groups, Pakistan itself has long faced international scrutiny for providing safe havens and logistical support to various terror outfits operating across the region.

In its statement, Pakistan said it expects the interim Afghan government to fulfil its obligations and prevent the use of its soil against Pakistan, calling on the international community to press Afghan authorities to honour commitments under the Doha Agreement.

The military escalation by Pakistan comes after a stern warning from Pakistan’s Foreign Office on Thursday (February 19, 2026), which stated that the country reserves the right to target Afghanistan to protect the lives of its citizens.