Pakistan carried out a ground operation and strikes along its border with Afghanistan, the Pakistani information minister said on Sunday.

The operation was launched in response to "recent multiple terrorist incidents inside Pakistan," Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said in a post on X late Sunday.

It was "followed by calibrated strikes in the border region against the hideouts and safe havens of terrorists," Tarar added. 

Tara said at least 29 militants were killed in the strikes, including a senior commander. He posted up a blurred but graphic image purportedly showing the dead commander.

On Monday, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said that airstrikes hit Paktika, Paktia and Kunar provinces. Mujahid condemned the Pakistani military actions as a "cowardly act of aggression" in an X post.

Strikes are the latest in cross-border violence 

The strikes come a day after a bomb and gun attack in the southern port city of Karachi killed three paramilitary troops.

Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a breakaway faction of the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, claimed responsibility for the Karachi attack.

The Pakistani Taliban are a separate militant group but are allied with the Afghan Taliban.

Islamabad accuses the the Taliban of harboring militants who carry out deadly attacks inside Pakistan.

The Afghan Taliban, which seized power in neighboring Afghanistan in 2021, denies the accusation.

Pakistan and Afghanistan have seen their ties spiral into deadly armed conflict in recent months. 

Edited by: Kieran Burke

Don't let the algorithm hide the news. If you rely on our team for trusted reporting, please take a moment to select us as your Preferred Source on Google by clicking here and hitting the "star" or "preferred" button, so you'll always see our verified news first.