War broke out in India’s neighborhood? Pak attacks border province of Afghanistan, Taliban retaliates

Pakistani forces shelled Afghanistan’s Paktika province, days after Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) threatened Islamabad and Kabul with army chief General Asim Munir over terrorist attacks. Reports said that Pakistani forces shelled alleged TTP positions along the Afghan border, following which Taliban forces also retaliated. The clash took place amid tensions between the two sides over the presence of TTP in Afghanistan. There has been no official statement from Kabul or Islamabad on the alleged clash.

Pakistan this week sent its special envoy to Kabul on a three-day visit to send a clear message that the interim government must take decisive action against the TTP. But the Afghan Taliban told him after several meetings that Pakistan should adopt the path of peace instead of using force. During his visit, Ambassador Asif Durrani met Afghanistan’s Acting Deputy Prime Minister Mawlawi Abdul Kabir, Acting Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaki and other officials.

Official sources familiar with the closed-door talks told The Express Tribune that the Afghan Taliban leadership was told in clear terms that Pakistan’s patience with the TTP was wearing out. Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch told her weekly news briefing that the issue of terrorism, as I have said earlier also in previous briefings, is a matter of grave concern for Pakistan. Pakistan has raised this issue with Afghan officials on several occasions and in every important dialogue between Pakistan and Afghan interim officials.