Islamabad (AP) — Pakistani troops and Afghan forces exchanged fire late on Friday along the two countries’ tense border, but no casualties or damage were reported. Each side blamed the other for triggering the clash in violation of a fragile ceasefire that has been in place for the past two months.
Negotiations between Kabul and Islamabad aimed at easing border tensions and upholding the truce broke down in November, though the ceasefire — brokered by Qatar in October — has mostly held. The exchange came a day after Pakistan said it would allow the United Nations to send relief supplies into Afghanistan through the Chaman and Torkham border crossings, which had been largely closed amid rising tensions.
Mohammad Sadiq, a local Pakistani police official, said the shooting began from the Afghan side and that Pakistani troops returned fire near the Chaman crossing, a key transit route. In Kabul, Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman for the Afghan Taliban government, accused Pakistan of initiating the exchange, saying Pakistan “once again launched attacks on Afghanistan in the Spin Boldak district of Kandahar, forcing the forces of the Islamic Emirate to respond.” Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban refer to their administration as the Islamic Emirate.
Abidullah Farooqi, a spokesman for Afghan border police, said Pakistani forces first lobbed a hand grenade into the Spin Boldak border area, prompting a response, and reiterated Afghanistan’s commitment to the ceasefire. Mosharraf Zaidi, a spokesman for Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, said the “Afghan Taliban regime resorted to unprovoked firing along the Chaman border” and that Pakistani forces remain alert to protect territorial integrity and citizens’ safety.
Tensions spiked after deadly border clashes in October killed dozens of soldiers, civilians and suspected militants and wounded hundreds on both sides. The violence followed explosions in Kabul on Oct. 9 that the Taliban blamed on Pakistan and vowed to avenge. The fighting was the worst between the neighbors in years. The Qatar-mediated ceasefire eased tensions somewhat, but subsequent peace talks in Istanbul failed to produce an agreement.
Pakistan has blamed most militant attacks inside its territory on the Pakistani Taliban, or Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Though separate from the Afghan Taliban, the TTP is closely allied with it, and many of its fighters are believed to have taken refuge in Afghanistan since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, further straining relations.
By AP
December 6, 2025, 11:33:33 AM IST (Published)
