Conflicts & War

Pakistan forces, Taliban exchange fire in border skirmish

Islamabad, Feb 24 (EFE).- Pakistani security forces and the Taliban on Thursday exchanged fire on the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, after a dispute over their positions in the border zone.

The clash took place on Thursday afternoon around 4 pm on the bilateral border, close to the Chaman border crossing on the Pakistani side and Wesh on the Afghan side.

“Basically they (Taliban) wanted to construct a post very near to the fence which we have erected, or you can say inside the Pakistani territory,” a Pakistani security official told EFE on the condition of anonymity.

He added that the Pakistani troops had urged the Taliban to stop construction, but they did not pay heed.

“First they opened fire and our forces responded in retaliation. I don’t want to speculate how many casualties were on their side but there were casualties,” said the source.

The Chaman-Wesh crossing is the second most important border transit post between the two countries, straddling Pakistan’s Chaman district and the Spin Boldak district in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province.

Clashes between the two forces have been frequent, mostly as exchanges of fire without casualties on each sides.

The Pakistani military has for years been building and strengthening a fence on its border with Afghanistan, to prevent cross-border infiltration by armed groups.

Some Taliban leaders have expressed displeasure over the construction of the fence, as according to them it divides the Pashtun community on both sides of the border, which has contributed the highest number of members to the Islamist group’s ranks. EFE

aa-igr/ia

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