Pakistan launched airstrikes and sent ground troops into Afghan provinces along its border on Sunday, killing dozens.At least 36 civilians, including women and children, have been killed and more than 160 others wounded, says Afghanistan’s Taliban government, and has condemned it as a “cowardly act” and “a crime and atrocity”.Pakistan’s information minister Attaullah Tarar said 29 militants were killed in strikes targeted at their hideouts, adding that the strikes were a response to “recent terrorist attacks against innocent people”.

Pakistan has long accused Afghanistan of harbouring terror groups that carry out cross-border attacks, a claim the Taliban government rejects.Kabul, in turn, has previously accused Islamabad of carrying out unprovoked attacks in which civilians were killed – though Pakistan says it only targets militants.The two countries had agreed to a ceasefire last October following weeks of deadly clashes. As with past internationally-mediated truce deals, however, that ceasefire has since fallen apart.

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