Pakistan government planning to “dismantle” Afghan government, sources say — Kabul reports deadly airstrikes

 

Islamabad / Kabul, Oct. 15, 2025 — Pakistan’s government, with alleged backing from the United States, is reportedly engaged in efforts to weaken and replace Afghanistan’s Taliban-led administration, according to  sources cited by regional media and officials. The claims come amid a sharp escalation of cross-border military activity this month that Kabul says has killed dozens of civilians.

 

 

 

 

 

Afghan authorities and Taliban spokesmen accused Pakistani forces of carrying out airstrikes on populated areas of Kabul and other provinces over the past week, saying markets and residential neighbourhoods were hit and that at least 14 civilians — including children and women — were killed in some of the incidents. Pakistan’s military has confirmed strikes inside Afghanistan against militant targets but denies deliberate attacks on civilians. 

 

 

 

 

 

The Taliban government has vowed to retaliate for the attacks, heightening fears of a broader interstate confrontation across the porous Afghanistan-Pakistan border. International agencies and independent outlets have reported mass displacement and mounting humanitarian concerns in border areas as exchanges of fire and aerial strikes continue. 

 

 

 

 

Separately, multiple unnamed sources told regional outlets that elements within Pakistan’s security establishment — historically including the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) — are in contact with anti-Taliban Afghan groups and are seeking to build political alternatives to the current Kabul administration. Analysts note a long history of Pakistani intelligence engagement in Afghan politics, but contemporary allegations that Islamabad is actively trying to “dismantle” the Afghan government are serious and remain politically sensitive and contested.

 

 

 

 

 

A Pakistani government statement provided to the press reiterated Islamabad’s stated objective: to prevent Afghan territory from being used as a base for attacks on Pakistan and to target groups the Pakistani state regards as terrorists. The Pakistani military says its operations are aimed at fighters responsible for attacks on Pakistani soil; Afghan officials dispute many of those claims and say Islamabad’s actions violate Afghan sovereignty.

 

 

 

 

International actors have urged restraint and called for urgent diplomatic channels to defuse the crisis. Regional mediators have previously stepped in to pause flare-ups, but analysts warn that continued strikes, reprisals and political manoeuvring risk drawing neighbouring states deeper into confrontation and worsening the humanitarian toll on civilians.

 

 

 

 

 

 

What remains unclear: independent verification is limited for some of the more politically charged allegations — especially the claim that Pakistan is actively coordinating with the United States to install a replacement government in Kabul. Those assertions are currently made by unnamed sources and by Afghan officials; they require further corroboration before they can be treated as established fact. Reporters and analysts caution that, in a fast-moving conflict, claims and counterclaims often circulate quickly and must be checked against independent evidence. 

Reporting compiled from Reuters, AP, Al Jazeera and regional analyses.