ISLAMABAD (Dispatches) -- Pakistani security forces killed several Afghan Taliban fighters after foiling an attempted incursion into Pakistani territory in Balochistan’s Gulistan sector early Friday, Pakistani security sources said. 
The clash came hours after Pakistan conducted what it described as “precision aerial and drone strikes” against 10 locations inside Afghanistan on Thursday, targeting sites Islamabad said were used to launch drone attacks into Pakistani airspace a day earlier. 
Intermittent firing continued along the border after midnight, according to security sources cited by state media, though the claims could not be independently verified.
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the strikes were carried out under Pakistan’s “sovereign right to self-defense” after eight drones launched from Afghan territory entered Pakistani airspace on Wednesday — four near the Torkham border and four near Kohat. 
Pakistan’s air defense systems tracked and neutralized all intruding platforms before they reached their targets, Tarar said, calling the incursion a “blatant violation” of sovereignty.
Afghanistan’s Taliban government rejected Pakistan’s account, with chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid saying four civilians were killed in Thursday’s strikes and denying that Kabul had launched any drones. 
Mujahid warned that Pakistan’s “aggression” would meet an “appropriate response,” while Information Minister Tarar said Pakistan does not seek escalation but would defend its territorial integrity “with full resolve”.
The Friday exchange marks the latest escalation in a cycle of violence that began after two deadly militant attacks in northwestern Pakistan last week, including a suicide bombing and gunbattle at a police compound in Kohat that killed at least 21 people. 
Islamabad has repeatedly accused Kabul of harboring the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and allied militant groups that launch cross-border attacks — allegations the Afghan Taliban denies.
The renewed hostilities threaten mediation efforts by China, Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, which have sought to broker a durable ceasefire between the two neighbors. 
Key border crossings including Torkham and Chaman have remained largely closed for months, with Afghan officials estimating monthly trade losses of nearly $200 million and Pakistan’s Khyber Chamber of Commerce reporting total economic losses of $2.5 billion.