Pakistan, Afghanistan Agree to 48-Hour Ceasefire Amid Border Clashes
Islamabad: Pakistan on Wednesday announced a 48-hour ceasefire agreement with Afghanistan following intense border clashes that have claimed dozens of lives on both sides.
“The Pakistani government and the Afghan Taliban regime have mutually agreed to a temporary ceasefire for the next 48 hours, starting from 6 pm today, at the request of the Taliban,” Pakistan’s Foreign Office said in a statement quoted by Dawn.
The statement added that both sides would make “sincere efforts to find a positive solution to this complex but solvable issue through constructive dialogue” during the ceasefire period.
There was no immediate response from the Afghan government confirming the agreement.
Earlier, state-run PTV News reported that Pakistan’s armed forces had carried out “precision strikes” in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province and in the capital, Kabul. Citing security sources, the report claimed that dozens of Afghan and foreign operatives were killed in the strikes.
The Pakistan Army also stated that it had repelled multiple attacks by the Afghan Taliban, killing over 40 attackers in separate border clashes. “While repulsing the attack, 15–20 Afghan Taliban were killed and several others injured,” the army said, adding that the situation remained tense with reports of further militant build-up at staging points of Fitna al-Khawarij and Afghan Taliban.
Pakistani authorities use the term Fitna al-Khawarij to refer to militants belonging to the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
