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On February 27, 2026, the Pakistan-Afghanistan border war was taken to a whole new level when the Afghan sources reported that their defense forces shot down a Pakistani fighter jet—an F-16—that purportedly intruded into the Afghanistan airspace amid ongoing military operations.

An Afghan-based media outlet, Tolo News, cited security sources that the aircraft was shot down after Pakistani jets flew over Afghan airspace in retaliatory attacks on Taleban targets following Islamabad-led Operation Ghazab lil-Haq airstrikes on Taleban targets. In an unverified video on X, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid and pro-Afghan accounts allegedly allowed the Taliban to show burning aircraft wreckage with what seems to be Pakistani writing and what is variously reported to be its serial number (85610 or 85510), claiming that this was the downing.

Pakistan quickly denied the assertion, citing it as propaganda and denying the loss of any aircraft. Islamabad claimed that it had launched its attacks against militants' hideouts that were associated with Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and not the assets of the Afghan military. The video has been disputed by defense analysts and fact-checkers, citing, among others, inconsistency in the shape/size of the wreckage (not an F-16), the possibility of AI manipulation, and provenance to other older events (e.g., a US crash in the 1990s or other wars).

The event is preceded by days of intense shelling across the border with crossfire, mortar attacks, and ground operations on the challenged frontier Durand Line, with each side blaming the other and insisting on backing off the insurgents. According to the Defence Minister of Pakistan, Khawaja Asif, the situation was open war, and Kabul reported the Pak desertion gains and losses territorially.

No external confirmation of the downing of the jet has come out through any credible international authority, and the Taliban, who does not have a working air force, would have used ground-based air defense or MANPADS in such an endeavor. The assertion seems to be a part of the information war in the unsteady confrontation.

Fighting has persisted, and there are international demands to de-escalate the situation with an apprehension of further instability in the region. The episode highlights the shakiness of the Pakistani-Afghanistan ties, which have been tense due to militant safe havens, border conflicts, and mutual suspicion for a long time.