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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Friday justified its strikes in Afghanistan, saying it had “exercised its right to self-defense,” as an international wire agency reported Afghan and Pakistani officials confirming a ceasefire extension for talks in Doha.

The fierce battles between the two neighbors along their long and porous border broke out last Saturday and led to the deaths of dozens of people on both sides, with Pakistan carrying out airstrikes in Kandahar and Kabul before a two-day truce was agreed that was set to expire Friday evening.

The clashes came amid Pakistan’s claims that the Afghan Taliban had been sheltering banned militant groups like theTehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and facilitating cross-border attacks, allegations Kabul denies.

“Such unprovoked actions aimed at destabilizing the Pakistan-Afghanistan border belied the overall spirit of a peaceful neighborhood and cooperative relations between the two neighboring countries,” Foreign Office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said during his weekly news briefing, referring to the clashes. “Pakistan, exercising its right of self-defense, not only effectively repulsed the assaults all along the border but also inflicted heavy losses on Taliban forces and affiliated terrorist groups.”

He maintained that Pakistan’s “targeted and precise defensive response” was not directed toward the Afghan civilian population.

“Unlike Taliban forces, we exercise extreme caution in our defensive responses to avoid the loss of civilian lives,” he continued.

Khan said Pakistan was closely monitoring the situation and would take all possible measures to safeguard its territory and the lives of its people.

He also cautioned against the continued militant presence in Afghanistan, saying they enjoyed freedom of activities in that country, which was well documented and mentioned in the United Nations Monitoring Team reports.

“The fight against terrorism is a common cause,” he added. “Instead of shifting responsibilities, the Taliban regime should honor its commitment not to allow its territory to be used for terrorism against other countries and play its due role in achieving peace and stability in the region and beyond.”

Within a few hours of his news conference, Reuters reported that Pakistan and Afghanistan had agreed to extend the 48-hour ceasefire reached on Wednesday until the conclusion of planned talks in Doha.

It cited three Pakistani security officials and one Afghan Taliban source, adding that a delegation from Islamabad had already arrived in the Qatari capital while an Afghan team was expected to reach there on Saturday.

The Foreign Office spokesperson said, prior to the development, Pakistan had repeatedly shared its concerns related to the presence of TTP and BLA militants in Afghanistan, adding that Islamabad expected concrete and verifiable actions against them by the Taliban regime.

He said Islamabad had always preferred diplomacy to address outstanding issues with Kabul and wanted regional stability.

KARACHI: Pakistan has vaccinated more than 41.6 million children throughout the country as part of an ongoing polio immunization campaign nationwide, the National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) said on Friday.

The week-long campaign launched on Monday, with officials aiming to reach over 45 million children across Pakistan, amid efforts to eradicate the paralytic disease. Pakistan is one of only two countries alongside Afghanistan where wild poliovirus still remains an endemic.

According to the NEOC, 22.5 million children have so far been vaccinated in Punjab, 9.3 million in Sindh, 5.9 million in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), 2.3 million in Balochistan, 367,000 in Islamabad, 293,000 in Gilgit-Baltistan and 729,000 children in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

The South Asian country, which is home to 241 million people, has reported 29 polio cases so far this year, including 18 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, nine in Sindh and one each in Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan.

“Joint and sustained efforts continue for the complete eradication of polio,” the NEOC said, warning that polio “is a dangerous disease that can cause lifelong paralysis.”

“The success of the anti-polio campaign depends heavily on the support of parents and the community.”

The vaccination campaign will be conducted in KP’s southern districts from Oct. 20 onwards.

Polio is a highly infectious and incurable disease that can cause lifelong paralysis. The only effective protection is through repeated doses of the Oral Polio Vaccine for every child under five during each campaign, alongside timely completion of all routine immunizations.

Pakistan has made remarkable progress since the 1990s, when annual polio cases exceeded 20,000, bringing them down to just eight by 2018. However, the country recorded 74 cases in 2024 — a sharp increase from six in 2023 and only one in 2021.

Vaccine hesitancy fueled by misinformation and opposition from some religious hard-liners still hinder eradication efforts. In remote and volatile areas, vaccination teams often operate under police protection, though security personnel themselves have also been targeted and killed in attacks by militant groups.