Four Killed, 70 Injured in Mortar, Rocket Attacks by Pakistan, Afghan Taliban Says

28 February 2026, Afghanistan, Torkham: A Taliban fighter checks his weapon next to an armored vehicle at a checkpoint near Torkham border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan. (dpa)
28 February 2026, Afghanistan, Torkham: A Taliban fighter checks his weapon next to an armored vehicle at a checkpoint near Torkham border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan. (dpa)
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Four Killed, 70 Injured in Mortar, Rocket Attacks by Pakistan, Afghan Taliban Says

28 February 2026, Afghanistan, Torkham: A Taliban fighter checks his weapon next to an armored vehicle at a checkpoint near Torkham border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan. (dpa)
28 February 2026, Afghanistan, Torkham: A Taliban fighter checks his weapon next to an armored vehicle at a checkpoint near Torkham border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan. (dpa)

Mortar and rocket attacks launched by Pakistan against Afghanistan killed four people on Monday and injured 70 more, the Taliban government said, as fighting between the countries erupted again and threatened to derail fragile peace talks.

Pakistan's government dismissed the claims as a "blatant lie."

About 30 students, women, and children were among those injured in the attacks, which targeted homes and the Syed Jamaluddin Afghani University in Kunar province's Asadabad, the Taliban's deputy spokesperson Hamdullah Fitrat said.

"We strongly condemn these attacks by the ‌Pakistani military regime, in ‌which ordinary people, academic, and educational institutions ‌were ⁠targeted, and declare ⁠them unforgivable war crimes," he said in a post on X.

Pakistan's information ministry in a post on X said no strike had been carried out on the university. "The claims are frivolous and fake," it said.

The Pakistani military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The worst fighting in years erupted between ⁠the allies-turned-foes in February, with Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan ‌that Islamabad said targeted militant ‌strongholds.

Islamabad has said Kabul provides safe haven to militants executing attacks ‌on Pakistan from its soil. The Taliban has denied the ‌allegations and said militancy in Pakistan is an internal problem.

More than 400 people were killed in a Pakistani strike on a drug rehabilitation center in Kabul last month, the Taliban had said, before the ‌neighbors suspended fighting. Pakistan rejected the Taliban's statements, saying it "precisely targeted military installations and terrorist support infrastructure".

The ⁠United Nations ⁠Assistance Mission in Afghanistan had put the death toll at 143.

China, which was mediating between the countries, said earlier this month that they had agreed during peace talks in Urumqi to explore a comprehensive solution to their conflict.

Skirmishes have died down since the talks in Urumqi were announced, but there have been reports of a few small clashes. Three people were killed in mortar shelling by Afghan forces on April 18 in Pakistan's northern Bajaur region, security officials said.



Iran Says US No Longer in Position to ‘Dictate’ Policy to Other Nations

 Women carry Iranian flags as they cross an intersection to attend a pro-government gathering in Tehran, Iran, Monday, April 27, 2026. (AP)
Women carry Iranian flags as they cross an intersection to attend a pro-government gathering in Tehran, Iran, Monday, April 27, 2026. (AP)
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Iran Says US No Longer in Position to ‘Dictate’ Policy to Other Nations

 Women carry Iranian flags as they cross an intersection to attend a pro-government gathering in Tehran, Iran, Monday, April 27, 2026. (AP)
Women carry Iranian flags as they cross an intersection to attend a pro-government gathering in Tehran, Iran, Monday, April 27, 2026. (AP)

Iran said on Tuesday that the United States was no longer able to "dictate" what other countries do, as Washington weighed a new proposal from Tehran on unblocking the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran has effectively sealed off the strategic waterway since early in the war with the United States and Israel, sending shockwaves through global energy markets and putting the strait at the center of negotiations to end the conflict.

"The United States is no longer in a position to dictate its policy to independent nations," defense ministry spokesman Reza Talaei-Nik said, according to state TV, adding Washington would "accept that it must abandon its illegal and irrational demands".

While a ceasefire has halted the fighting between Iran, the US and Israel, talks on bringing a permanent conclusion to the conflict have been inconclusive.

The proposal being considered in Washington would reportedly reopen the Strait of Hormuz -- a vital conduit for global oil and gas shipments -- as broader negotiations on the war continue.

Talaei-Nik, speaking ahead of a Shanghai Cooperation Organization defense ministers' meeting, said Iran was also "ready to share its defensive military capabilities with independent countries, especially the member states" of the SCO.


Philippines Is Not Concerned Iran War Will Distract US from Region, Defense Secretary Says

Troops from New Zealand, the Philippines, US, and Australia pose for a photo with their national flags after participating in counter-landing live fire exercises during Balikatan, the annual joint military exercises between the US and the Philippines, at Long Point Beach, Brgy. Aporawan, Aborlan, Palawan, Philippines, April 27, 2026. (Reuters)
Troops from New Zealand, the Philippines, US, and Australia pose for a photo with their national flags after participating in counter-landing live fire exercises during Balikatan, the annual joint military exercises between the US and the Philippines, at Long Point Beach, Brgy. Aporawan, Aborlan, Palawan, Philippines, April 27, 2026. (Reuters)
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Philippines Is Not Concerned Iran War Will Distract US from Region, Defense Secretary Says

Troops from New Zealand, the Philippines, US, and Australia pose for a photo with their national flags after participating in counter-landing live fire exercises during Balikatan, the annual joint military exercises between the US and the Philippines, at Long Point Beach, Brgy. Aporawan, Aborlan, Palawan, Philippines, April 27, 2026. (Reuters)
Troops from New Zealand, the Philippines, US, and Australia pose for a photo with their national flags after participating in counter-landing live fire exercises during Balikatan, the annual joint military exercises between the US and the Philippines, at Long Point Beach, Brgy. Aporawan, Aborlan, Palawan, Philippines, April 27, 2026. (Reuters)

The Philippines is not worried about any reduction in US deterrence capabilities in the Indo-Pacific due to the Middle East war, though China would likely try to seize on any perceived opening, the Defense Secretary said ‌on Tuesday.

China's recent ‌actions in the ‌South ⁠China Sea and ⁠the Taiwan Strait were "not surprising", Gilberto Teodoro told Reuters in an interview, saying Beijing looked to take advantage when it thought rival powers were preoccupied ⁠elsewhere.

"It is not surprising ‌that ‌any opportunity they see, perceived opportunity, or ‌with a perceived weakness ‌or a perceived opening, they will take advantage," Teodoro said.

Teodoro said he had full confidence in the ‌Mutual Defense Treaty, the long-standing security pact between Manila ⁠and Washington, ⁠and was not worried by concerns that the Iran war could weaken US strategic bandwidth in Asia.

"I'm not concerned at all about reduced deterrence," he said, pointing to joint military exercises currently underway with the US as a sign of Washington's commitment.


Ukrainian Strikes Kill 3 in Russian Border Region

A crater is seen at the site of the Russian strike on a residential area in Odesa, Ukraine, 27 April 2026. (EPA)
A crater is seen at the site of the Russian strike on a residential area in Odesa, Ukraine, 27 April 2026. (EPA)
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Ukrainian Strikes Kill 3 in Russian Border Region

A crater is seen at the site of the Russian strike on a residential area in Odesa, Ukraine, 27 April 2026. (EPA)
A crater is seen at the site of the Russian strike on a residential area in Odesa, Ukraine, 27 April 2026. (EPA)

A Ukrainian drone attack Tuesday killed three people in the Russian border region of Belgorod, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.

"Three civilians were killed following drone attacks by the Ukrainian armed forces," he wrote on Telegram, adding that three others were wounded.

The drones targeted a car, killing a man and a vehicle in another area where a man and a woman died, he said.

Since the start of its offensive in Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has been regularly bombing Ukraine, especially key infrastructure sites.

In response, Kyiv strikes targets in Russia, insisting it is aiming at military sites as well as energy facilities in order to reduce Moscow's ability to finance its war effort.

A fire broke out on Tuesday at an oil refinery in Tuapse, in southern Russia, after debris from a Ukrainian drone that had targeted the facility fell on it, according to local authorities.