Blast, gunfire as Afghan forces shoot at Pak aircraft over Kabul

KABUL, Mar 01 (AFP): An explosion followed by successive gunfire were heard in central Kabul on Sunday, AFP journalists reported, with the Taliban government saying Afghan forces were shooting at a fresh incursion by Pakistani aircraft.

Months of cross-border clashes have flared since Thursday when Afghanistan launched an offensive along the frontier, with Pakistani forces hitting back on the border and from the skies.

"Anti-aircraft fire is being directed at Pakistani aircraft in Kabul," Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said Sunday, referring to guns being fired overhead.

Pakistan acknowledged bombing key cities on Friday including Kabul and Kandahar, which is home to Afghanistan's supreme leader.

The Afghan authorities have accused Pakistan of killing civilians in multiple attacks, which Islamabad has not commented on.

In rural southern Kandahar, construction workers said they were hit Sunday by two air strikes, which the manager of the site said killed three people.

"Everything went dark before our eyes," said 20-year-old Enamullah, who only gave one name. "I came from Kabul just to earn a piece of bread."

Afghan officials said Thursday's border offensive was a response to earlier air strikes that killed civilians, which Pakistan said targeted militants.

In addition to those killed in Kandahar, the Afghan government's deputy spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat said Pakistani fire has killed 30 civilians across eastern Khost, Kunar and Paktika provinces since Thursday.