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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) on Wednesday announced the launch of the country’s first Hyperspectral Satellite (HS-1) from China’s Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on October 19, marking what officials described as a major leap in national space and climate-monitoring capability.

The HS-1 mission will capture hundreds of spectral bands across visible and infrared wavelengths to help detect changes in soil, vegetation, water bodies and man-made structures with far greater precision than conventional imaging satellites. Officials say the technology will be applied to improve agricultural productivity, monitor environmental degradation and strengthen early-warning systems for floods and landslides.

SUPARCO said the satellite will provide “detailed insights into crop health, soil moisture and irrigation patterns— enhancing yield estimation by 15–20 percent and contributing significantly to food security.” 

The agency added that HS-1’s sensors would also enable mapping of infrastructure and tracking of urban expansion to support sustainable city planning and land-use management.

“The HS-1 launch represents a transformative milestone in Pakistan’s national space program,” SUPARCO said in its statement. “The mission aligns with the National Space Policy and SUPARCO’s Vision 2047, which aim to position Pakistan at the forefront of space technology and innovation for sustainable national development.”

The new satellite will join Pakistan’s growing remote-sensing fleet, which includes PRSS-1 launched in 2018 and two Earth-observation satellites— EO-1 and KS-1— placed in orbit earlier this year. 

Officials said integrating HS-1 will expand Pakistan’s capacity for disaster assessment, water-resource modelling and climate-change monitoring, while deepening collaboration with China in the civilian space sector.
 

PESHAWAR: Pakistan’s military said on Wednesday its forces had repelled coordinated attacks by Afghan Taliban fighters at multiple points along their shared border in the Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces, accusing Kabul’s forces of destroying a key trade gate and endangering civilians.

The clashes came days after some of the heaviest cross-border fighting in recent years, in which Pakistan said 23 of its soldiers were killed while Afghan authorities claimed to have killed 58 Pakistani troops. The escalation has strained already frayed ties, coming as Afghanistan’s foreign minister visited archrival India. Pakistan views New Delhi’s growing influence in Afghanistan as a regional security threat, given their own long-standing rivalry.

Relations between Islamabad and Kabul have deteriorated sharply since 2021, when the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan. Hopes for cooperation soon gave way to distrust as cross-border militancy surged, particularly in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Pakistan says the Afghan Taliban are sheltering fighters from the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and allowing them to stage cross-border attacks from Afghanistan. Kabul denies the allegation, saying it does not permit its territory to be used against other countries.

“The Afghan Taliban resorted to cowardly attack at four locations in Spin Boldak area of Balochistan. The attack was effectively repulsed by Pakistani Forces,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing, said in a statement. 

It said militants destroyed the Pak-Afghan Friendship Gate on their side, a symbolic port of entry infrastructure built to facilitate bilateral trade and regulated crossings, undermining formal border control, and launched assaults that penetrated villages split by the frontier, disregarding civilian safety.

The military said the attacks were coordinated with members of “Fitna Al-Khawarij,” a term Pakistan uses for militants linked to the TTP and which Pakistan says are backed by Afghanistan and India. Both deny the charge. 

The ISPR said 15–20 Afghan Taliban fighters were killed in Spin Boldak and another 25–30 in Kurram district, where Pakistani troops destroyed eight Taliban posts and six tanks in what it called a “proportionate response.”

Earlier on Wednesday, the Kabul government said 15 civilians were killed and dozens wounded in fresh clashes on the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

“The insinuations that the attack was initiated by Pakistan are outrageous and blatant lies, just like the claims of capturing Pakistani posts or equipment,” the ISPR said, calling Taliban statements “propaganda … debunked with basic fact checks.” 

It added: “The Armed Forces stand resolute and fully prepared to defend the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Pakistan. All acts of aggression against Pakistan will be responded to with full force.”

Cross-border trade remained suspended on Wednesday as officials on both sides confirmed military reinforcements had been deployed around Chaman and Spin Boldak. 

Tensions between the two nations have also worsened since 2023 when Pakistan began deporting hundreds of thousands of undocumented Afghans, a move it said was necessary to curb terrorism and smuggling. By 2025, more than 800,000 Afghans had been repatriated or forced out, according to government figures.

India’s deepening engagement with the Taliban, including reopening its Kabul embassy last week, has further heightened Islamabad’s concerns. 

Regional powers, including ��������, have called for restraint and renewed dialogue to prevent the escalating hostilities from destabilizing South Asia.