Deadly border clashes erupted again between Pakistan and Afghanistan this weekend, leaving at least four civilians dead on the Afghan side, according to officials, marking a new flare-up in tensions along the volatile frontier despite a fragile ceasefire.
The overnight exchange of heavy fire between Pakistani troops and Afghan forces loyal to the ruling Taliban centered on the vital border crossing points of Chaman in Pakistan and Spin Boldak in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province.
An Afghan official, Abdul Karim Jahad, the governor of Spin Boldak district, told reporters Saturday that at least four Afghan civilians were killed and four others wounded in the fighting, alleging that Pakistani forces attacked with “light and heavy artillery” that struck civilian homes.
On the Pakistani side, a local hospital in Chaman confirmed three people had been treated for minor injuries from the clash and subsequently discharged.
“Unfortunately, tonight, the Pakistani side started attacking Afghanistan in Kandahar, Spin Boldak district, and the forces of the Islamic Emirate were forced to respond,” Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban government spokesman, wrote on social media late Friday, referring to the Taliban’s administration as the Islamic Emirate.
A spokesman for Pakistan’s prime minister, Mosharraf Zaidi, countered the claim, stating that the “Afghan Taliban regime resorted to unprovoked firing.” Zaidi added, “An immediate, befitting and intense response has been given by our armed forces.”
The incident comes just two days after a new round of peace talks aimed at de-escalating the long-simmering border dispute ended without a breakthrough.
