Recurrent clashes between the forces of Afghanistan and Pakistan near the two countries’ borderline raised concerns over the escalations and more fatalities.
According to a Pakistani health source, combat erupted between Pakistan and Afghanistan forces near the borderline. This is the second time of similar confrontations in few days, injuring at least 16 people in Pakistan.
According to Dr. Akhtar Mohammed, a hospital staff, significant artillery shelling near the Chaman-Spin Boldak crossing point began about noon. prompting the center to announce an urgent situation.
The source said that two kids were among the injured and that “four people were in serious condition, and they have been taken to Quetta for further care.”
According to Pakistani military sources, civilian areas of Chaman were the target of “indiscriminate shooting” coming from the other side of the border. “No dead bodies were brought to hospital so far,” the source said while one death has been confirmed.
According to Pakistani military sources, civilian areas of Chaman were the target of “indiscriminate shooting” coming from the Afghan side of the border.
Authorities in Chaman informed reporters that markets close to the border had closed and that the city has entered a state of uneasy quiet. According to the Afghan Ministry of Defense, Pakistani soldiers fired first.
The Kabul administration feels that discussion is the best course of action, according to a tweet from the ministry.
On Sunday, there were at least nine innocent casualties in Pakistan as a result of fighting between the two nations close to the same border crossing. The crossing links the Balochistan, Pakistanwith the Kandahar, Afghanistan, two provinces in the southwest and the southeast respectively.
The Afghan government was charged of firing “unprovoked and indiscriminate” fire by the Pakistani army.
Pakistan, Not Alone in Its Concerns
Pakistan’s Minister of Defense, stated in front of the legislature on Monday that Afghan officials had “apologised” for the event on Sunday and promised it wouldn’t happen again.
Khwaja Mohammed Asif said that while Pakistan’s frontier forces were maintaining the border barrier, a “provocation was launched by Afghanistan.” Kabul said that it would be “unfortunate” if Sunday’s tragedy happened again.
Nearly 74 miles northwest of Quetta, the capital of the Balochistan province, is the Chaman crossing point. It is a crucial commerce corridor and one of the largest crossing points between the two nations.
Back in November this year, after a Pakistani military officer was killed in the same zone by an unidentified shooter, the crossing was shut for multiple days. The ties between the two neighbors have been tight since the Taliban seized power in August, 2022.
Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an armed organisation that is a branch of the Taliban, is allegedly being harbored by Afghanistan, according to Pakistan. Taliban has made no clarifications on any attempts to show goodwill regarding the safety of neighbors.
Apart from Pakistan, Iran has also had challenges with Afghan troops near the border during the past year. Tehran has meant to show reservations, refraining from any hostility. Reports about the expansion of ISKP, the ISIS branch in Khorasan province of Afghanistan, has raised concerns in Iran and other countries.
