Dozens killed in Afghanistan-Pakistan border clashes

Dozens of soldiers and civilians were killed in a new round of border clashes Wednesday between Pakistan and Afghanistan, officials from both countries reported.

Violence between the two neighbors escalated last week following a series of explosions in Afghanistan—including two in the capital, Kabul—that AFP reported were blamed on Pakistan.

The Afghan Taliban government launched a retaliatory offensive along parts of its southern border, prompting Pakistan to respond in kind, the agency reported.

Islamabad accuses Afghanistan of harboring militias led by Pakistan's paramilitary Taliban Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP) movement, an allegation Kabul denies.

A new outbreak of violence

In the latest outbreak of violence, the Pakistani military accused the Afghan Taliban of attacking two key border posts in the southwest and northwest regions.

According to the military, both attacks were repelled, and around 20 Taliban fighters were killed in operations launched Wednesday morning near the town of Spin Boldak on the Afghan side of the border

"Regrettably the attack was orchestrated through divided villages in the area without any consideration for the civilian population," the Pakistani military said in a statement.

The military added that another 30 people were reportedly killed in border clashes along Pakistan's northwest frontier.

The Afghan government said 15 civilians were killed and dozens more wounded in clashes near Spin Boldak, adding that 'two or three' of its fighters were also killed.

Ali Mohamad Haqmal, an Afghan spokesman for the Spin Boldak area, said that some civilians were killed by mortar fire.