Fancy stories.

On 09 October, "Afghanistan's Taliban government has accused Pakistan of violating Kabul's 'sovereign territory', describing it as an 'unprecedented, violent and provocative act'." "The allegation comes as two loud blasts were heard in the city. Pakistan had also bombed a civilian market in the border province of Patika, in Afghanistan's south-east." "Pakistan has neither confirmed nor denied that they had launched an attack inside Afghanistan." BBC. "Islamabad says militants of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) operate from Afghanistan, a charge denied by Kabul." "A Pakistani security official said a vehicle used by the leader of the TTP, Noor Wali Mehsud, was targeted in the Kabul airstrike. It was unclear if he survived." Pakistan accuses India of supporting TTP, India denies the accusation. Reuters. "A Taliban spokesman said 58 Pakistani military personnel had been killed in what it called 'an act of retaliation'." BBC. "At least 23 Pakistani soldiers and over 200 Taliban affiliated terrorists were killed in intense overnight clashes along Pakistan-Afghanistan border, the Pakistan Army said." DH. Claims and counter-claims are reminiscent of India's retaliation against the Pahalgam attack on 22 April 2025, targeted mainly against Hindu tourists  (wikipedia). On 07 May, "Indian Armed Forces launched 'Operation Sindoor' hitting terrorist infrastructure." "Our actions have been focused, measured and non-escalatory in nature. No Pakistani military facilities have been targeted." pib.gov.in. However, in September, during a cricket game against India, Pakistani fast bowler Haris Rauf made a '6-0' gesture towards the Indian crowd to indicate six Indian fighter aircraft shot down during Operation Sindoor. TOI. Not in retaliation, on 03 October, "IAF destroyed 9-10 Pakistani fighters like US-origin F-16s and Chinese JF-17s, as well as at least two special aircraft...Air Chief Marshall AP Singh said.., while rejecting Islamabad's counter-claims as 'manohar kahaniyan (fanciful stories)." TOI.  In September, nuclear-armed Pakistan signed a mutual defence pact with Saudi Arabia which "states that any aggression against either country shall be considered an aggression against both," a statement from Pakistani prime minister's office said." Reuters. US troops fled Afghanistan on 30 August 2021 (wikipedia) leaving $7 billion worth of military hardware behind. "According to a 2022 Department of Defense report, 78 aircraft, 40,000 military vehicles and more than 300,000 were among some of what was left behind." CBS News. Mutual defence pact vs $7 billion worth of arms, six Indian planes vs 9-10 Pakistani ones, 58 or 23 Pakistani soldiers vs 200 Taliban. Very confusing. Which story is most fanciful?