Pakistani fighter jet shot down in Jalalabad, Afghan forces say pilot captured alive after cross-border clashes escalate tensions

JALALABAD: A Pakistani jet has crashed in Jalalabad city and the pilot captured alive, the Afghan military and police said Saturday, with residents telling AFP the man parachuted from the plane before being detained.

“A Pakistani fighter jet was shot down in the sixth district of Jalalabad city, and its pilot was captured alive,” police spokesman Tayeb Hammad said.

Wahidullah Mohammadi, spokesman for the military in eastern Afghanistan, confirmed the Pakistani jet was downed by Afghan forces “and the pilot was captured alive”.

The announcement followed an AFP journalist hearing a jet over Jalalabad, followed by the sound of two explosions from the direction of the city’s airport.

Pakistan’s military and information ministry did not immediately reply to AFP’s request for comment.

Pakistan launched air strikes Friday on the Afghan capital Kabul and southern Kandahar, where Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada is based.

The aerial attacks followed Afghan forces starting a border offensive against Pakistan late Thursday, which the Taliban government said came in response to prior Pakistani strikes on Afghanistan.

 The Sun Malaysia