TAKHAR -- Unidentified foreign warplanes carried out air strikes Sunday (August 26) in Takhar Province along the Tajik-Afghan border after a shootout between gunmen and Tajik authorities, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) reported, citing Afghan officials.
The strike took place late Sunday night-early Monday morning, according to Khaama Press.
Either Russian or Tajik fighter jets carried out the air strikes in Darqad District after a clash between Afghan drug smugglers and Tajik border guards, said Muhammad Jawid Hejri, a spokesman for the Takhar governor.
Tajikistan has a tiny air force, while the 201st Military Base in Tajikistan is Russia's largest military installation abroad. Both Tajikistan and Russia denied carrying out any bombings in the area.
The clash left two Tajik border guards dead and prompted rocket fire and the air strike from the Tajik side, said Hejri, adding that the area is under Taliban control.
Sources differ on whether the two slain Tajiks were border guards or forest rangers.
