Multiple Explosions Rock Kabul; Locals Report Jets Hovering Over Afghan Capital
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Last Updated:March 17, 2026, 00:22 IST
Multiple explosions were heard in Kabul, Afghanistan, with fighter jets seen circling at low altitude over western Kabul shortly after the blasts.
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Multiple explosions were heard in Afghanistan’s Kabul City and surrounding areas on Monday night amid the ongoing conflict with Pakistan. Local residents reported seeing fighter jets circling at low altitude over parts of western Kabul shortly after the blasts.
Sources told CNN-News18 that at least two explosions were heard in Kabul’s 5th district. Security forces and emergency vehicles were seen moving toward the affected areas as authorities began assessing the situation.
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The Taliban government in Afghanistan has accused Pakistan of violating Afghan airspace. “The Pakistani military regime has once again violated Afghanistan’s airspace and targeted a drug rehabilitation hospital in Kabul, resulting in the death and injury of addicts who were undergoing treatment," said Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid.
قام النظام العسكري الباكستاني مرةً أخرى بانتهاك أجواء أفغانستان، حيث استهدف مستشفى علاج المدمنين في كابل، مما أدى إلى استشهاد وإصابة عدد من المدنيين الذين كانوا يتلقون العلاج.إننا ندين هذه الجريمة بأشد العبارات، ونعتبر مثل هذا العمل مخالفًا لجميع المبادئ المتعارف ألإنسانية.— Zabihullah (..ذبـــــیح الله م ) (@Zabehulah_M33) March 16, 2026
“We condemn this crime in the strongest terms and consider such an act to be in violation of all universally recognised humanitarian principles," he added.
Meanwhile, Pakistan said it had carried out precision strikes on “military installations and terrorist support infrastructure" in Kabul but denied Afghan claims that strikes hit a drug treatment centre, killing civilians. It said the military targeted locations in Kabul and the Afghan border province of Nangarhar.
The headquarters of Afghanistan’s Ministry of Defence has come under the attack, according to sources. Initial reports suggest the explosions may have occurred near security installations, though this has not been officially confirmed.
The situation in Kabul remains tense as residents report continued aircraft activity over the city. The Pakistani military has struck Kabul several times in recent weeks, as part of a conflict sparked by claims that the Taliban government has harboured militant groups that have carried out attacks across the border.
Earlier, Pakistan fired more than 270 rockets and artillery shells in a span of 48 hours. Afghanistan retaliated by striking several security checkpoints near the border with Pakistan.
Pakistan has repeatedly accused Afghanistan of allowing militant groups — especially the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) — to operate from Afghan territory and launch attacks in Pakistan. Kabul, on the other hand, has constantly denied the allegations.
The airstrikes prompted a retaliatory attack from the Taliban-led government in Afghanistan, triggering a cycle of daily clashes, drone strikes and cross-border exchanges along the shared frontier between the two nations.
Earlier this week, Pakistan carried out a series of airstrikes across multiple Afghan locations, targeting what it said were militant positions. According to Pakistani intelligence sources, the strikes focused on high-value targets linked to the Afghan Taliban and the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). However, the Afghan Taliban accused Islamabad of killing civilians and warned that the attacks “will not go unanswered."
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