I suspect some mediation has happened given Iran-Gulf heating up.
Operation Ghazab Lil Haq temporarily paused on request of Saudi, Qatar and Turkiye in view of Eidul Fitr: Tarar
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Wednesday announced a "temporary pause" in Operation Ghazab Lil Haq against the Afghan Taliban and terrorists in the neighbouring country on request of mediating countries and the upcoming Eidul Fitr holidays.
Operation Ghazab Lil Haq was launched last month following renewed clashes along the Pakistan–Afghanistan border, after Afghan Taliban forces fired on multiple locations, prompting swift military retaliation by Pakistan.
The neighbouring countries have been engaged in escalating hostilities along the frontier since then. The clashes intensified after Afghanistan launched a border offensive in response to earlier Pakistani air strikes targeting terrorist positions.
“In view of the upcoming Islamic festival of Eid-ul-Fitr, upon its own initiative as well as on the request from the brotherly Islamic countries of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the State of Qatar and the Republic of Turkiye, the Government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan has decided to announce temporary pause amidst ongoing "Operation Ghazab Lil Haq" against the terrorists and their support infrastructure in Afghanistan,” Tarar said in a post on X.
The minister said the pause shall be applicable from midnight March 18/19, 2026, to midnight March 23/24, 2026.
He said Pakistan was offering the gesture in good faith and in keeping with Islamic norms, adding that in the event of any cross-border attack, the operation would be resumed.
“In case of any cross-border attack, drone strike or any terrorist incident inside Pakistan, ‘Operation Ghazab Lil Haq’ shall immediately resume with renewed intensity,” the minister concluded.
In a subsequent post, the minister provided a summary of the Afghan Taliban regime’s losses in the operation, stating that 707 operatives had been killed and more than 887 injured during Operation Ghazab Lil Haq until the ceasefire.
He said 255 check posts had been destroyed and 44 others captured by Pakistani security forces.
“Two hundred and thirty-seven tanks, armoured vehicles and artillery guns have also been destroyed during the operation,” he said.
The minister added that 81 terrorists and their locations across Afghanistan were effectively targeted by air strikes.
He maintained that Pakistan had successfully targeted terrorists’ affiliated installations in Afghanistan on the night of March 16, adding that the Pakistan Armed Forces struck Afghan military installations in Kabul and Nangarhar.
“Pakistan’s forces destroyed drone storage and technical support infrastructure, as well as ammunition storage sites in Kabul and Nangarhar, which were being used by the Afghan Taliban and terrorist elements to carry out attacks against innocent Pakistani civilians,” he added.
The minister said the Pakistan Armed Forces effectively targeted and destroyed Afghan Taliban posts in the Bajaur, Kurram, Torkham Khyber, and North and South Waziristan sectors.