Airstrikes and clashes displace thousands as Afghanistan–Pakistan tensions escalate: UN

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Thursday airstrikes and Durand Line clashes between Afghanistan and Pakistan from 26 February to 3 March have affected at least 10 provinces as tensions between the two countries escalated.

According to OCHA, the violence impacted the provinces of Kabul, Kandahar, Khost, Kunar, Laghman, Nangarhar, Nuristan, Parwan, Paktia and Paktika.

As of 4 March, at least 56 civilians have been killed and 129 others injured, while hostilities remain ongoing in Nangarhar, Kunar, Khost, Paktia and Paktika provinces.

OCHA estimates that 16,370 families have been newly displaced by the fighting, including 2,500 families in Khost, 3,500 in Kunar, 2,500 in Nangarhar, 470 in Paktika, 7,000 in Paktia and 400 in Nuristan.

The displacement comes in addition to around 7,000 families still displaced after the 31 August 2025 earthquake in eastern Afghanistan, bringing the total number of displaced families to about 23,370, or roughly 163,590 people.

OCHA said the new displacement is worsening existing vulnerabilities. In Kunar Province, 3,640 families who had been living in informal settlements after the earthquake have been evacuated or ordered to leave areas near a military compound and return to their original locations. Another 2,074 families in Kunar and Nangarhar are at risk of secondary displacement.

Airstrikes have also damaged civilian infrastructure, including health facilities and humanitarian sites. Among the affected facilities are a 20-bed emergency hospital at the IOM Transit Centre and the Omari Returnee Reception Centre at the Torkham Crossing in Nangarhar.