The Taliban-ruled state has suffered Pakistani strikes against government installations over the past week following accusations, which it denies, that it harbors militants.

By Emma Farge GENEVA, March 3 (Reuters) - Hundreds of thousands more children face acute malnutrition in Afghanistan this year amid a hunger crisis exacerbated by foreign aid cuts and violence on the border with Pakistan,

Pakistan and Afghanistan have continued trading attacks after Pakistan bombed Afghanistan’s two biggest cities in the early hours of Friday.

U.N. officials urged Afghan authorities to rescind the decree, which also criminalizes criticism of the de facto leadership and their policies.

The airstrikes came hours after Afghan troops had attacked Pakistani border positions and follow months of worsening relations between the neighboring countries.

Pakistan has been the Afghan Taliban’s closest friend for decades. It was Islamabad that helped give birth to the Taliban in the early 1990s – as a way to give Pakistan "strategic depth" in its rivalry with India.

Both sides have fired shots at each other

PM Shehbaz Sharif said the Pakistani armed forces have the capability to “crush any aggressive ambitions,” while defence minister Khawaja Asif declared that “our patience has reached its limit.” | Wor