Pakistan–United States skirmishes

On 10 June 2008, 10 Pakistani paramilitary troops from the Frontier Corps and a Pakistan Army major, were killed by a US airstrike in Pakistani tribal areas. The airstrike occurred following clashes between Taliban fighters and Afghan troops. Afghan troops ordered an airstrike against the Taliban which, according to the US, accidentally hit a Pakistani post. [3]

Pakistani troops fired warning shots into the air to deter Afghan troops from entering Pakistan. It occurred on the Afghan side of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border close to Angoor Ada, some 30 kilometers from Wana, the main town in South Waziristan in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan.

Seven US helicopter gunships and two troop-carrying Chinook helicopters landed on the Afghan side of the border, in the Afghan province of Paktika, where US troops then tried to cross the border into Pakistan. As they did so, Pakistani paramilitary soldiers at a checkpoint began firing shots and the US troops decided not to continue forward. The firing reportedly lasted for several hours. Local tribesmen also evacuated their homes and took up defensive positions in the mountains after placing women and children out of harm's way.[4]

The standoff occurred less than two weeks after 3 September 2008 Angoor Ada raid, during which U.S. Special Forces conducted a raid inside Pakistani territory. That incident caused much consternation and protests in Pakistan, over the violation of Pakistan's sovereignty.

Two AH-64 Apache helicopters were intercepted over Pakistani territory

On 21 September 2008 at 10 pm local time, in the Ghulam Khan district of North Waziristan Pakistani soldiers fired on two American helicopter gunships, that entered Pakistani airspace, with 12.7 mm heavy machine guns. The helicopters stopped and hovered for a while, before returning over the border to Afghanistan without retaliation. It is unknown if any of the helicopters sustained any damage in this first incident.[5][6]

Thirty minutes later, two gunships attempted to cross the border again at the same place. Pakistani regular and Frontier Corps troops fired warning shots into the air and away from the helicopters, causing the helicopters to turn back without attacking any targets in Pakistan.[7]

On 25 September 2008 Pakistani troops fired on two American OH-58 Kiowa reconnaissance helicopters; U.S. ground troops, who the helicopters were supporting, returned fire. No one was injured on either side and the helicopters were undamaged. American and NATO officials asserted that the helicopters were flying within Afghan territory to protect an armed patrol. Pakistani officials declared that the helicopters were inside Pakistani territory and were fired upon by "flares" as a warning.[8]

On 30 September 2010. U.S. helicopters entered Pakistani airspace after ground troops determined that a mortar attack by militants in Pakistan was imminent, according to the Coalition. Pakistani Frontier Corps troops manning the Mandata Kadaho border post fired warning shots, and the helicopters responded by firing two missiles that destroyed the post. Three soldiers were killed and another three wounded. Pakistan responded by closing a key NATO supply route for eleven days.[9]

On May 17, 2011, a skirmish between a U.S. helicopter and Pakistani forces took place in the Datta Khel area. According to NATO, an American base along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border took direct and indirect fire from Pakistan. Two U.S. helicopters flew into the area. According to the Pakistani military, the helicopters had breached its airspace. Pakistani forces fired at a helicopter twice, and the helicopter returned fire, injuring two soldiers. Pakistan reportedly deployed two attack helicopters, which arrived after the U.S. helicopters had left.[10]

On 26 November 2011, 28 Pakistani soldiers,[11] including 2 officers,[12][13][14] were killed and the remainder injured in an attack on two Pakistani border posts in Mohmand tribal region by NATO Apache helicopters, an AC-130 gunship and fighter jets.[15][16] There were a total of 40 soldiers present in the check post and the raid took place at night while most of them were sleeping or resting.[16][17][18] The attack was the deadliest strike to date on Pakistani soil by NATO.[19] Pakistan claimed that there was no militant activity along the Afghan border region when NATO conducted the attack.[20] Pakistan immediately suspended all NATO supplies to Afghanistan in the aftermath of the attack.[16][20][21] Pakistan later also ordered the U.S. to completely shut down operations and vacate the Shamsi Airfield in Balochistan, which the U.S. reportedly uses for launching drone attacks in Pakistan, within a time frame of 15 days, the NATO claimed responsibility for the attack.[22]