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US May budget deficit shrinks but customs collections turn negative due to tariff refunds

June 10, 2026 6:04 PM UTC / Reuters

A general view of the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 12, 2026. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

WASHINGTON, June 10 (Reuters) – The U.S. budget deficit for May fell $23 billion or 7% to $293 billion due largely to ​prior-year calendar shifts in benefit payments as both ‌outlays and receipts fell, with the latter taking a big hit from refunds of President Donald Trump’s emergency tariffs, the Treasury ​Department said on Wednesday.

Customs duty refunds totaled $21.97 billion ​in May against gross customs collections of $21.93 billion, ⁠making for net customs outflows of $42 million for ​the month, the Treasury said.

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The U.S. Customs and Border ​Protection agency began issuing refunds of some $166 billion in tariffs collected under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act that were declared illegal ​by the U.S. Supreme Court in February. Prior ​to this, customs duties had become a significant source of Treasury ‌monthly ⁠receipts, reaching into the low $30 billion range late last year.

Total receipts for May fell $36 billion or 10% to $336 billion compared to May 2025, while outlays fell $59 billion, ​or 9% to $628 ​billion.

But taking ⁠into account calendar shifts of some June 2025 payments into May that year, the ​Treasury said the adjusted May budget deficit ​at $293 ⁠billion would be an increase of $71 billion or 32% from the prior year.

The budget deficit for the first eight ⁠months ​of the fiscal 2026 year starting ​Oct. 1 totaled $1.246 trillion, a decline of $118 billion or 9% on ​an unadjusted basis.

Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Andrea Ricci

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Emergency action seeks to prevent erasure of ‘mother’ and ‘father’ in code of largest US town

2026-06-10 12:19 EDT / Fox News

New York’s legislature voted to use nonbinary terms ‘gestating parent’ and ‘non-gestating parent’ in its state code

By Elaine Mallon, Fox News

Published June 10, 2026 12:19pm EDT

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6398079128112

America’s largest township fights NY bill replacing ‘mother’ and ‘father’ with “woke” terms

Officials in America’s largest township are pushing back against a New York Democrat-backed bill that would replace “mother” and “father” in state law with gender-neutral parental terms, passing an emergency resolution to preserve those terms.

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Officials in America’s most populated township are taking urgent action to stop a Democrat-backed bill that would replace “mother” and “father” in New York State law with gender-neutral parental terms.

The emergency resolution from Hempstead Township comes just days after New York State Legislature passed a bill that would replace “mother” with the term “gestating parent” and “father” with “non-gestating parent.” It would also change “paternity” to “parentage.”

Democrats say the measure is an effort to be more “inclusive” of the state’s residents with non-traditional “gender identities.” It is now awaiting action from Democrat Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Hempstead Township Supervisor John Ferretti told Fox News Digital the legislation is “woke nonsense.”

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman stands with Town of Hempstead Supervisor John Ferretti, Town of North Hempstead Supervisor Jen DeSena, and other local officials to provide a public safety update and share tips with residents ahead of an approaching winter storm on Jan. 23, 2026 in Mineola, New York.(Howard Schnapp / Newsday RM via Getty Images)

“As a father of two, it was an insult to me and to my wife,” Ferretti said in an interview on Tuesday. “As soon as I learned, the first thing I did was bring my wife into our bedroom and say, ‘Look what they did up in Albany. They’re eliminating the terms mother and father from state law.’”

His nine-year-old daughter overheard the conversation and got upset, asking Ferretti: “Can I still call you dad?”

BILL REPLACING ‘MOTHER’ AND ‘FATHER’ WITH GENDER-NEUTRAL TERMS PASSES IN NEW YORK, HEADS TO HOCHUL’S DESK

“It really hit close to home,” he continued. “We need to take a stand in the Town of Hempstead, the largest township in America, and make sure that we make it clear not just to residents in the Town of Hempstead, but to residents throughout New York State, that we won’t stand for this kind of woke nonsense.”

While the 2026 legislative session ended last week, Hochul has until the end of the year to sign the bill into law. Hochul told reporters last week that she had not yet reviewed the proposal.

“I have until the end of the year to review them and make a decision, so I won’t be commenting on pending legislation,” Hochul said during a news conference, according to FOX 5 New York.

Ferretti said he hopes Hochul ultimately rejects the bill, but said she’ll wait to act until after the election “because she’s not brave enough to take a stand.”

He said that the emergency resolution in Hempstead is intended to ensure the town continues recognizing the terms “mother” and “father” in its own laws and policies, regardless of whether the state measure ultimately becomes law.

LONG ISLAND COUNTY EXECUTIVE VOWS TO ‘PROTECT’ WOMEN’S SPORTS AFTER APPEALS COURT HALTS TRANS ATHLETE BAN

Hempstead Township supervisor John Ferretti is slamming the New York legislature for “erasing” mother and father from the state’s legal code.(John Ferretti)

“We’re taking a stand because we will not allow woke Democrat liberals in New York State and the New York State Legislature to erase the traditional family,” Ferretti said. “They did not pass a law that adds language. They passed a law that erases mother and father from certain statutes under New York state law, and that’s completely unacceptable.”

“If Albany wanted to add additional language to their state laws, they could have added additional language, and we would not be discussing this right now,” Ferretti continued. “Instead, they chose to erase mother and father and replace it, and we won’t stand for that.”

Ferretti said the resolution has garnered support from Republican lawmakers representing Nassau County, including Assembly Minority Leader Ed Ra, state Sen. Steve Rhoads, Assemblywoman Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick and other members of the county’s Republican legislative delegation.

GOP LAWMAKERS, RILEY GAINES SLAM DEMOCRATS FOR VOTING AGAINST PROTECTION OF WOMEN AND GIRLS IN SPORTS ACT

Republican gubernatorial candidate and Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman also blasted the proposal on social media.

“In Kathy Hochul’s New York, ‘mom’ is now defined as ‘gestating parent,’” Blakeman wrote. “Not when I’m Governor! I’ll stand up for moms and dads against this insanity.”

The fight marks the latest cultural flashpoint involving Hempstead, a Republican-led township of roughly 800,000 residents located on Long Island and within Nassau County. Hempstead officials previously backed measures include a push to keep biological males from competing in girls’ and women’s sports athletic facilities operated by Hempstead Township.

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman announced an executive order banning transgender girls and women from competing in women’s sports at county facilities in Mineola, N.Y., on March 18, 2024.(Adam Gray/Reuters)

Conservative groups are also mobilizing against the parental-language bill.

“It’s just absurd, but also inherently dehumanizing,” Maggie McKneely with Concerned Women for America Legislative Action Committee told Fox News Digital.

“It reduces women to just their reproductive organs, but women are so much more than that. They are individuals with unique abilities and capabilities, and yes, motherhood is one of the greatest things that a woman can be. Being a mother is an incredible gift,” McKneely continued.

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“Women do so much more than that, and to reduce them to just whether or not they are capable of gestating a child is really sad and dehumanizing. To reduce men to being just non-gestating people is just really sad.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Hochul’s office for comment.

Elaine Mallon is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business covering national politics.

Bill Gates faces congressional investigators over ties to Jeffrey Epstein

2026-06-10 1:53 PM EDT / CNN

By Janelle Olisea, CNN

Published 1:53 PM EDT, Wed June 10, 2026

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Bill Gates faces congressional investigators over ties to Jeffrey Epstein

Bill Gates testified behind closed doors on Capitol Hill on Wednesday. The release of the Justice Department’s files related to Jeffery Epstein have raised questions over the Microsoft founder’s ties to the late convicted sex offender.

https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/10/politics/video/bill-gates-congressional-hearing-epstein-digvid

ICE mandates additional training for new hires after backlash

June 10, 2026 2:52 PM EDT / CBS News

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Camilo Montoya-Galvez
Camilo Montoya-Galvez Immigration Correspondent
Camilo Montoya-Galvez is the Immigration Correspondent at CBS News, where his reporting is featured across multiple programs and platforms, including national broadcast shows, CBS News 24/7, CBSNews.com and the organization’s social media accounts.

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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement this week extended training for new officers and mandated additional instruction for those onboarded under a shortened Trump administration academy process that has now been scrapped, according to an internal agency memo obtained by CBS News.

The moves follow months of concerns raised by Democratic lawmakers, advocates and former ICE officials about the length and quality of the training undergone by the federal immigration agents at the forefront of President Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration.

Those concerns intensified after federal immigration agents fatally shot two U.S. citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, during a controversial crackdown in Minneapolis earlier this year that the Trump administration scaled back after bipartisan backlash.

In February, Ryan Schwank, a former ICE instructor, delivered a scathing whistleblower complaint to Congress, denouncing the agency’s training process as “deficient, defective, and broken.” He warned that the administration was at risk of onboarding thousands of ICE officers who would not be able to carry out immigration enforcement in a lawful way.

In an internal memo this week, an ICE official said the agency would be extending its core training program for immigration enforcement officers from 42 days to roughly 71 days. That extended training period is set to start in July for new academy classes at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, or FLETC, in Georgia, where ICE recruits are trained.

ICE officers who underwent the prior 42-day training process will now be required to participate in an additional “follow-on” training, dubbed the Advanced Field Officer Training Program, according to the memo. It’s unclear how long or intensive that supplemental training will be.

The ICE official said the training changes were designed to promote officer safety, operational efficiency and compliance with laws and policies.

The revamp of ICE’s officer training scheme was previewed by Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin during testimony before Congress last week.

“The training policy is going to change a little bit, because we’re going to be doing crowd control and fit today’s needs. But all training always is willing to change, back and forth,” Mullin told lawmakers on the Senate Appropriations Committee on June 2.

In a statement to CBS News, the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, confirmed the training changes.

“As our officers continue to face coordinated campaigns of violence against them including riots outside ICE facilities, sniper attacks, and more than a 1,300% increase in assaults against them, ICE is instituting additional training including, crowd control measures, additional training for high-risk vehicle stops, a live-fire cover course for officer safety, and medical training,” DHS said.

The added training, DHS said, will be “tracked online and monitored closely.”

“New hires take what they learn at FLETC and apply it to real-life scenarios while on duty, preserving ICE’s reputation as one of the most elite law enforcement agencies not only in the U.S., but the entire world,” DHS said.

The shortened ICE training course was adopted during the tenure of now-ousted Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, as the Trump administration moved quickly to hire and onboard 10,000 new deportation agents. ICE began that massive hiring blitz after receiving an unprecedented $75 billion infusion of funds through the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill” last summer.

For months this year, congressional Democrats refused to fully fund ICE and Border Patrol unless the administration agreed to make certain reforms, such as prohibiting agents from masking up during operations.

Republicans eventually moved forward with funding the agencies through the end of President Trump’s term using the reconciliation process, which did not require making a deal with Democrats. Both chambers passed the $70 billion legislation over the past week, and the president signed it into law Wednesday morning.

Trump says US will strike Iran ‘very hard’ again today

June 10, 2026 12:08pm EDT / Fox News

Trump accused Tehran of shooting down an American military helicopter and stringing the US along in negotiating a nuclear deal

By Stephen Sorace, Fox News

President Donald Trump revealed the U.S. will be attacked Iran on Wednesday, citing stalled talks, attack on U.S. helicopter.

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President Donald Trump vowed a forceful response against Iran on Wednesday, saying the U.S. would be “attacking them very hard” after accusing Tehran of prolonging nuclear negotiations and targeting a U.S. helicopter.

Trump was asked during the signing of the Secure America Act in the Oval Office what he meant about an earlier social media post in which he wrote that Iran has taken too long to negotiate a deal and “now they will have to pay the price!!!”

“We’re going to be attacking them and attacking them very hard,” Trump told reporters, adding that the action is being taken after Iran shot down an American military helicopter.

The two crew members aboard a U.S. Army AH-64 Apache were rescued by American forces after the helicopter went down near the coast of Oman while patrolling regional waters, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said Monday. Both soldiers were safely rescued within two hours.

US ARMY HELICOPTER GOES DOWN, BUT PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP SAYS ‘PILOTS ARE FINE’

President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, June 10, 2026, in Washington.(AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

On Tuesday, CENTCOM said U.S. forces completed self-defense strikes against Iran on Tuesday at Trump’s orders in response to the downing of the helicopter.

A U.S. Army AH-64D Apache helicopter hovers during military exercises between Poland and NATO allied countries in Orzysz, northwestern Poland, on Sept. 17, 2025.(WOJTEK RADWANSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

“We hit them hard yesterday and we’re going to hit them again hard today,” Trump said.

Trump said the U.S. and Iran are “really close to a deal,” though accused Tehran of “tapping us along” and “playing us for suckers.”

When asked if the U.S. will strike Iranian power plants and bridges, Trump said he wouldn’t disclose any details.

“We have the strongest military anywhere in the world,” the president said. “And sometimes you’ll have to use it.”

President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, June 10, 2026, in Washington.(AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Trump reiterated that Iran cannot be allowed to have a nuclear weapon.

TRUMP KEEPS FORECASTING AN IRAN DEAL – WHY THE WHITE HOUSE STILL THINKS IT CAN HAPPEN

“They’ve agreed to that,” he said, adding that all Tehran has to do is sign the agreement.

“It’s fully negotiated,” Trump said, “but they’re tapping and tapping. And I say, ‘All right, let’s give them a couple of more days’ … because it’s a meaningful paper. They know when they sign that paper it’s meaningful.”

In a Truth Social post from earlier Wednesday, Trump claimed Iran’s military “is a complete and total mess.”

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“Much of it, like their Navy and Air Force, doesn’t even exist anymore – They have been completely defeated,” the post read. “Iran is all talk and no action. The Bully of the Middle East is DEAD!!! They’ve taken too long to negotiate a deal that would have been great for them, now they will have to pay the price!!!”

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6398084301112

Dem Rep Chrissy Houlahan on Graham Platner: ‘I’m not a resident of Maine…I don’t make that choice for the people of Maine’

2026-06-10T19:07:06.864Z / CNN Politics

By Dana Bash, CNN

Published 3:07 PM EDT, Wed June 10, 2026

https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/10/politics/video/rep-chrissy-houlahan-on-platner-nomination

Dem Rep Chrissy Houlahan on Graham Platner: ‘I’m not a resident of Maine…I don’t make that choice for the people of Maine’

Inside Politics

Democratic Congresswoman Chrissy Houlahan tells Dana Bash she is “hopeful” Graham Platner’s campaign for Senate in Maine is “successful” after he wins the Democratic nomination despite a string of controversies.

1:29 • Source: CNN

Vance says Netanyahu has “certainly gotten some things wrong”

June 10, 2026 / 3:42 PM EDT / CBS News

Vice President JD Vance said the interests of the U.S. and Israel are not always in sync as President Trump’s relationship with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been tested over the Iran war.

“Prime Minister Netanyahu, look, he governs a country that has obviously been a very close partner of the United States. But, even when we’ve been close partners, sometimes we have interests that are perfectly aligned and sometimes we have interests that are misaligned,” Vance told Robert Costa in an interview airing this week on “CBS Sunday Morning.”

Vance described Netanyahu as a leader who “aggressively asserts the interests of his country” but said Mr. Trump “has been very clear about what is in our best interest.”

“Sometimes that means we’re on the same page and sometimes it means that we’re not,” Vance said, adding that “where that diverges, we, unfortunately for the Israelis, have to choose the side of the American people, which we always do.”

Asked whether Netanyahu has made any mistakes in how he’s approached his relationship with the U.S. on Iran, Vance said, “he’s certainly gotten some things wrong.”

Vance declined to give examples, saying those conversations “are better left in private.”

“But what I would say is that he’s been a good partner,” Vance said. “We’re gonna keep on working together. But where interests diverge, the United States is gonna pursue the best interests of our nation, and that’s how it’s gonna be.”

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/vance-says-netanyahu-has-certainly-gotten-some-things-wrong/

In recent weeks, Mr. Trump has spoken publicly about the need for Netanyahu to understand the president’s push to drive the negotiations with Iran himself.

Israel launched airstrikes on Beirut over the weekend, which led to Iran retaliating with its own strike on Israel.

Watch more of Vice President JD Vance’s interview on “CBS Sunday Morning” on June 14 at 9 a.m. on CBS stations and streaming on Paramount+.

US consumer inflation posts largest increase in three years in May

2026-06-10T12:41:11.785Z / https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-consumer-prices-increase-expected-may-2026-06-10/

WASHINGTON, June 10 (Reuters) – U.S. consumer inflation increased at its fastest pace in three years in May, boosted by surging prices for energy products ​amid the Middle East conflict, and giving more ammunition for the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates unchanged into 2027.

The third straight month of strong ​increases in the Consumer Price Index reported by the Labor Department on Wednesday underscored the mounting pressure on households, who are increasingly tapping their savings to fund spending.

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Inflation outpaced wage growth for a second consecutive month, which could weigh on overall economic growth. The soaring cost of living is a political liability for President Donald Trump and his Republican Party, seeking to retain control of Congress in the midterm elections in November. ​Trump won the 2024 presidential election in large part because of his promise to lower inflation, but has seen his approval rating tumble as frustration mounts over his handling ​of the economy.

“Americans are getting squeezed financially by inflation,” said Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union. “It’s not just bad vibes ⁠about the economy now; there are real financial pressures, especially on middle-class and lower-income households.”

The Consumer Price Index increased 4.2% in the 12 months through May, the largest gain since April ​2023, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said. The CPI advanced 3.8% year-on-year in April. Prices increased 0.5% over the month after climbing 0.6% in April. The rise in inflation ​was in line with economists’ expectations.

The U.S. central bank tracks the Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Indexes for its 2% inflation target. All inflation measures are running well above the Fed’s target.

A 3.9% jump in the prices of energy goods accounted for more than 60% of the rise in the monthly CPI. Energy prices rose 3.8% in April. They vaulted 23.5% in the 12 months through May. Gasoline prices accelerated 7.0% over the ​month and were up 40.5% from a year ago. Prices at the pump have retreated in recent weeks as oil prices eased, raising cautious optimism among economists that May could ​be the peak in CPI inflation.

But the U.S. and Iran engaged in tit-for-tat strikes on Tuesday, with President Donald Trump saying on Wednesday Tehran had taken too long to negotiate a deal and would now “have ​to pay ⁠the price.” Iran has said it would reassess diplomatic engagement with Washington.

Inflation last month was also lifted by higher rents. While food price growth slowed after accelerating in April, risks remained to the upside as the war, now in its fourth month, has raised the cost of fertilizers. Grocery prices edged up 0.1%, with increases in the prices of nonalcoholic beverages, cereals and bakery products as well as fruits and vegetables partially offset by decreases in the cost of meat and dairy products.

RENTS REMAIN ELEVATED

Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the CPI increased 2.9% ​year-on-year in May after rising 2.8% in ​April. The so-called core CPI gained 0.2% ⁠on a monthly basis after rising 0.4% in April. The slowdown in the monthly core CPI mostly reflected a 1.7% drop in motor vehicle insurance, the largest decline since October 2020.

Rents increased a solid 0.4% after rising 0.5% in April. Rent measures were boosted by a one-time ​adjustment in April after last year’s shutdown of the government prevented data collection. Economists had expected the effects to fade in May.

The ​dollar slipped against a basket ⁠of currencies. U.S. Treasury yields edged higher.

The CPI report followed news last week that the economy posted a third successive month of above-expectations job growth in May. The unemployment rate remained at 4.3% for a third consecutive month. Though financial markets have started pricing in a rate hike, economists continued to believe the bar remained high for the central bank to tighten monetary policy.

The Fed is expected ⁠to leave ​its benchmark overnight interest rate in the 3.50%-3.75% range at next week’s meeting.

“Now that the Iran crisis has extended ​into June, we have begun to see broader impacts across several categories of consumer prices,” said Jeffrey Roach, chief economist at LPL Financial. “If the Strait of Hormuz remains disrupted through the Labor Day weekend, we would expect the ​energy shock to affect additional sectors and heighten uncertainty about the future path of monetary policy.”

Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Andrea Ricci

Trump says he is seeking permanent US intelligence chief with security experience

2026-06-10 15:17:13 UTC / Reuters

By Reuters

June 10, 2026 3:17 PM UTC Updated 30 mins ago

U.S. President Donald Trump reacts as he boards Air Force One, after attending Game 3 of the NBA Finals, at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, U.S., June 8, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

WASHINGTON, June 10 (Reuters) – U.S. ​President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he ‌was looking for a permanent nominee who has experience in national security to head the Office of the Director of ​National Intelligence.

Trump, in a post on Truth Social, ​added that he had asked Bill Pulte to ⁠immediately downsize the office and revert staff to ​their home agencies when he takes over as acting director ​on June 19.

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“I have named William Pulte to be Acting Director of National Intelligence, who will take over on June 19th, ​and have asked him to execute the immediate ​and needed downsizing of the office, reverting staff to their home ‌agencies,” ⁠Trump wrote.

“At the same time, I am looking for a permanent ODNI Nominee with experience in National Security.”

Trump also called on Congress to send him a short-term ​extension of ​a key ⁠surveillance authority, known as FISA Section 702, to provide time for the selection and confirmation ​of a permanent head of the agency.

Section ​702 ⁠of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act allows U.S. intelligence agencies to monitor emails and other communications of foreigners ⁠located outside ​the United States without individual ​judicial warrants. The authority is set to expire Friday.

Reporting by Daphne Psaledakis; ​Editing by Ryan Patrick Jones; Editing by Doina Chiacu

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Pakistani airstrikes kill at least 13 in Afghanistan, Taliban says, as neighbors’ war reignites

2026-06-10T09:30:02-0400 / CBS/AP

Pakistan launched new airstrikes on Afghanistan early Wednesday in a further escalation of months of fighting between the neighbors that has killed hundreds of people. The strikes, which Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers said hit the eastern provinces of Khost, Kunar and Paktika, shattered more than a month of calm in the war.

Taliban regime spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told CBS News producer Sami Yousafzai that 13 people were killed, including 11 children, one woman and an elderly man, and that 14 other civilians were wounded.

Pakistan confirmed it had carried out strikes but said they were “precise and calibrated,” targeting militant hideouts and infrastructure linked to recent terror attacks inside Pakistan. Pakistani officials said 26 militants were killed.

The two sides often give widely differing casualty figures.

Afghan men gather to offer funeral prayers for Pakistani airstrike victims at Mani village in Spera district, Khost province on June 10, 2026. AFP via Getty Images

Pakistan and Afghanistan have engaged in deadly fighting since late February, when Afghanistan’s Taliban forces launched a cross-border attack on Pakistan in retaliation for Pakistani airstrikes. Several rounds of internationally mediated peace talks have failed to produce a lasting truce.

Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of harboring militants that carry out deadly attacks inside Pakistan, including the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP. The group is separate from but allied with the Afghan Taliban, which has ruled Afghanistan since it retook power over the country in 2021, amid the chaotic withdrawal of U.S.-led forces.

Taliban officials in Kabul deny Pakistan’s allegations.

In a post on X, Pakistani Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said “precise and calibrated strikes were carried out along Pakistan-Afghanistan border areas on hideouts and safe havens of masterminds and planners” of attacks carried out by the TTP and other insurgents in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region, bordering Afghanistan.

Tarar said four targets were destroyed in the operation: a training center, a hideout, an ammunition cache and a facility belonging to militant commanders. He added that Pakistan always strives to maintain peace and stability in the region, but that the safety and security of its citizens remain the priority.

The country’s counterterrorism campaign will continue “at full pace to wipe out the menace of foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism,” he said.

Pakistan’s Information Ministry dismissed the Taliban regime’s claims of civilian casualties as “peddling propaganda.”

Debate over death tolls

The wide gap in the death tolls reported by the two sides is emblematic of the information war playing out between the two countries: Afghanistan says the casualties were all civilians, Pakistan says they were all militants.

Sources on the ground told CBS News producer Sami Yousafzai that women and children were killed in the bombardment on Wednesday, however.

A member of the Afghanistan Red Crescent in Khost province told CBS News that a house belonging to a family in the village of Manah was struck Tuesday night during the bombing.

The aid worker said a family “had been living there for a long time,” and had no known connection to military activities.

Taliban forces in Afghanistan open fire on rare protest sparked by women’s arrests over dress code

“At least nine people were killed – eight children, a woman,” he said. “The bodies of innocent children remained at the site until morning when we arrived.”

Aziz Khan Safi, a resident of Kunar province, told CBS News that homes belonging to local families were hit during the overnight strikes. “One child was killed and three others were wounded,” he said.

“Open war”

The Pakistani strikes on Wednesday came a day after suspected TTP militants attacked a security post in Pakistan’s Hasan Khel area, in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan, triggering an intense gunfight in which six members of the Federal Constabulary were killed and several others wounded, according to Pakistan’s Interior Ministry.

Local authorities in Pakistan said Tuesday that security forces killed eight attackers and thwarted an attempt to seize the checkpoint.

Pakistan in February declared it was in “open war” with Afghanistan following a surge in militant attacks on civilians and security forces inside Pakistan. Afghanistan then said a Pakistani airstrike in March hit a drug treatment center in Kabul, killing more than 400 people.

Pakistan disputed that death toll and denied targeting civilians, saying it struck an ammunition depot.

Masood Khan, an Islamabad-based security analyst, says Pakistan’s priority is ending attacks by the TTP. He said the solution to the conflict is Afghanistan enforcing Taliban leader Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada’s order for the TTP to stop its attacks on Pakistan.

“That decree must be implemented sincerely and faithfully,” he said.