ISLAMABAD: Pakistan closed several border crossings with Afghanistan on Sunday following cross-border gunfire between the two nations, Pakistani officials confirmed.
The clash began late Saturday when Afghan forces reportedly fired on Pakistani border posts. Afghanistan’s Ministry of Defence stated the attack was in retaliation for Pakistani airstrikes carried out earlier in the week on Afghan soil, according to Reuters.
Pakistan responded with both small arms and artillery fire, and according to Pakistani security sources, several Afghan border posts were destroyed in the retaliation. While most of the exchange had subsided by Sunday morning, sporadic gunfire was still reported in Pakistan’s Kurram district, say local officials and residents.
As a result of the hostilities, Pakistan closed its two major crossings with Afghanistan—Torkham and Chaman—along with at least three smaller ones at Kharlachi, Angoor Adda, and Ghulam Khan, Reuters said citing local authorities.
The Taliban-led government in Kabul has yet to issue an official response to the border closures. However, Afghanistan’s defense ministry earlier stated that its military action had concluded by midnight local time. Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said on Sunday that there was “no threat in any part of Afghanistan’s territory.”
Afghanistan, which shares a 2,600-kilometer (1,600-mile) border with Pakistan, has long been accused by Islamabad of sheltering militants who launch attacks inside Pakistan—an accusation Kabul denies.
The Pakistani airstrikes that provoked the Afghan response were reportedly aimed at the leader of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in Kabul on Thursday. While Pakistan has not officially confirmed the airstrikes, a Pakistani security official said it was unclear whether the TTP leader was killed.
The TTP, which seeks to overthrow Pakistan’s government in favor of strict Islamic rule, has maintained strong ties with the Afghan Taliban.
(Inputs from Reuters)
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