In a major development, Pakistan and Afghanistan on Friday mutually agreed to extend their 48-hour ceasefire until the conclusion of planned talks in Doha, Reuters reported, citing sources.
A Pakistani delegation had already arrived in Doha while an Afghan delegation was expected to reach the Qatari capital on Saturday, the sources said, who did not want to be named as they were not authorised to speak to the media.
A temporary truce between the neighbours — which Pakistan agreed to at the request of Afghanistan — on Wednesday paused days of fierce fighting that killed dozens and wounded hundreds.
The development comes hours after Foreign Office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said that Pakistan and Afghanistan are engaged in constructive dialogue aimed at achieving a peaceful resolution to ongoing border tensions.
Addressing a weekly press briefing, Khan noted that during the 48-hour ceasefire, both sides were making “sincere efforts to find a positive resolution to this complex but solvable issue through constructive dialogue”.
Islamabad and Kabul are witnessing heightened tensions amid the Afghan Taliban regime’s reluctance to act against terrorist groups, operating from Afghan soil, in the backdrop of rising terror attacks in Pakistan.
The Taliban forces and India-backed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), alias Fitna al-Khawarij, resorted to an unprovoked attack on Pakistan on Oct 12.
The Pakistan Armed Forces gave a befitting response to the aggression, killing over 200 Afghan Taliban and affiliated militants in a self-defence action. The military’s media wing said that 23 soldiers embraced martyrdom in the clashes with the Taliban forces and the terrorists.
Furthermore, the security forces also conducted “precision strikes” in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province and the capital Kabul, successfully destroying multiple strongholds in response to recent aggression.
After the ceasefire, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that Pakistan was ready to hold talks with the Taliban regime in Afghanistan on reasonable terms. He noted that now the ball is in the Taliban regime’s court for a permanent ceasefire.
This is a developing story and is being updated with more details.
