Pakan, Afghanan extend ceasefire a week after Turkey talks | World News

Afghan refugees wait with their belongings to cross the Pakan-Afghanan border near Chaman, Oct 29. (AP Photo)

Pakan and Afghanan have agreed to extend their ceasefire for at least another week following talks in Turkiye, according to the Turkish Minry of Foreign Affairs. The minry said in a joint statement, issued on behalf of Pakan, Afghanan and mediators Turkiye and Qatar,  that the two sides would meet again on November 6 in anbul to finalise the implementation framework for the truce.

“All parties have agreed to put in place a monitoring and verification mechanism that will ensure maintenance of peace and impose a penalty on the violating party,” the statement said, as reported Al Jazeera.
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The weeklong border conflict earlier this month had erupted after explosions in Afghanan, which Kabul blamed on Islamabad. Pakan responded with cross-border strikes, claiming to have killed more than 200 Afghan fighters. Afghan officials, in turn, said 58 Pakani soldiers were killed. The clashes marked the most serious fighting between the neighbours since the Taliban seized power in Kabul in 2021, according to Al Jazeera.

The truce

Mediation efforts Qatar and Turkiye led to a ceasefire signed the defence miners of both nations on October 19 in Doha. The two countries, which share a 2,600-kilometre border according to Al Jazeera, held a second round of talks in anbul starting Saturday. However, discussions initially broke down on Wednesday after Islamabad demanded that Kabul take stronger action against the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakan (TTP), also known as the Pakan Taliban.

Pakan has long accused Afghanan of providing safe haven to the TTP, which it blames for deadly attacks inside Pakan. Kabul has repeatedly denied the allegations.

Talks resumed on Thursday, leading to an agreement to maintain the ceasefire until the next round of negotiations.

Afghan government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid confirmed the outcome, saying both sides had agreed to continue discussions in future meetings. Pakan has not yet issued a statement.

Despite the truce, the border between Pakan and Afghanan remains closed for over two weeks, disrupting trade and causing mounting losses for businesses on both sides. In Kandahar, Afghan cloth trader Nazir Ahmed told AFP that both nations were suffering economically. On the Pakani side, Abdul Jabbar, a vehicle parts trader in Chaman, echoed the sentiment, as reported Al Jazeera.