Taliban say 8 killed in Pakistani strikes on Afghanistan

A Taliban government spokesperson said on Monday that Pakistani airstrikes killed at least eight people, including three children, in border regions of Afghanistan.

Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesperson, said Pakistani aircraft struck civilian homes in Khost and Paktika provinces near the border with Pakistan at around 3:00 a.m. local time (2230 GMT). 

According to Mujahid, all eight people killed were women and children.

Mujahid condemned the airstrikes saying Kabul "does not allow anyone to compromise security by using Afghan territory."

President promises retaliation

The airstrikes targeted multiple suspected hideouts of Pakistani Taliban inside Afghanistan, two Pakistan security officials told AP news agncy.

The early morning strikes came two days after a suicide bombing targeted a Pakistan army post near the Afghan border.

A suicide bomber had rammed a truck filled with explosives into a military checkpoint in northwest Pakistan, killing seven soldiers.

During the funeral of the soldiers, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari promised a strong response.

"The blood of our martyred soldiers will not go in vain," he said.

On Saturday, Pakistan said its troops killed six militants that in a shootout in North Waziristan, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that borders Afghanistan.

This is a developing story and will be updated...

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