A ceasefire halted deadly cross-border skirmishes between Afghanistan and Pakistan that killed dozens in October, but online claims that Kabul's Taliban government asked Islamabad for forgiveness are unfounded. The false posts, which circulated widely among Pakistani social media users, feature a forged news report.
"Indeed, God likes those who forgive. We ask Pakistan for forgiveness," says Urdu-language text on a graphic purportedly published by major Pakistani broadcaster Geo News.
It was shared on X on October 12 and features a picture of Afghanistan's Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, suggesting he issued the supposed remarks.
Similar posts also surfaced widely on Facebook and X the day after Afghanistan's Taliban forces launched attacks on Pakistani troops along their shared border, in what it called "retaliation for air strikes carried out by the Pakistani army on Kabul" (archived link).
Islamabad has not directly claimed responsibility for the strikes, but has repeatedly stated the right to defend itself against surging militancy that it says is planned from Afghan soil.
The two sides have repeatedly clashed in border regions since the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan in 2021.
Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban government spokesman, said that 58 Pakistani soldiers were killed during clashes on October 12 and around 30 wounded, while nine Taliban forces were killed.
The Pakistani military, meanwhile, said 23 of its soldiers and more than 200 Taliban and...
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