Reuters: Clashes between Afghan and Pakistani security forces have killed two people and wounded several in a border region of the two neighbours, officials said, the latest in a series of such skirmishes. Click here to read more (external link).
Tolo News: Acting Defense Minister Mawlawi Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid said that the Islamic Emirate has not allowed Pakistan to continue fencing along the Durand Line. Mr. Mujahid said that consultations are currently ongoing among high-ranking officials within the Islamic Emirate. Click here to read more (external link).
The Guardian (UK): Five Pakistani soldiers killed as Taliban-led Afghanistan resists cooperation with Islamabad “In the beginning, Pakistani authorities believed the Taliban would serve Pakistan’s interests and [not] allow militants to use its soil against Pakistan. But it does not seem to be the case any more,” he said, adding that the extremists were emboldened
Tolo News: The Islamic Emirate is forming a joint committee comprised of several ministries to address the problems along the Durand Line, officials said on Monday. The Pakistan military’s move to build fencing along the Durand Line has continually sparked reactions from Afghanistan. Click here to read more (external link). Related Pakistan, Afghanistan pledge coordination on
Tolo News: A high-level delegation of Pakistan, led by the country’s National Security Adviser Moeed Yusuf, is due to visit Afghanistan on Tuesday, Pakistani media reported. The visit comes amid rising tension between Kabul and Islamabad over the fencing of the Durand Line. Click here to read more (external link).
Tolo News: “If the Islamic Emirate agrees to fencing, indeed it means the recognition of the line (Durand Line,” said Sayed Javad Husseini, leader of Hezb-e-Tawsa Wa Adalat. The Durand Line has been a controversial issue between the two neighboring countries for a long time. Click here to read more (external link).
Tolo News: Afghanistan’s ambassador to Islamabad called the Durand Line a national issue, saying that the decision over its fate should be referred to the nation. Sardar Ahmad Khan Shikib, the newly appointed ambassador of the Islamic Emirate to Pakistan, also called on Islamabad to be the first nation to recognize the ruling Afghan government.
8am: Pakistan’s National Security Adviser, Moeed Yusuf is scheduled to visit Kabul as tensions along Durand Line intensify. The decision was made during a meeting of the Afghanistan Inter-Ministerial Coordination Center chaired by Asad Qaisar, National Assembly Speaker of Pakistan on Thursday, the statement said. Click here to read more (external link).
Aamaj: Ms Gohar asks “how could they (Taliban) pull down the much touted fence without their master’s nod? No media outrage?” She believes that it is an orchestrated move to build national credentials for Taliban. Click here to read more (external link). Related Pakistan completes 94% of border fence, despite ‘isolated’ incidents
Tolo News: Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Monday acknowledged there were “some complications” pertaining to the fencing of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border but said that the matter was being discussed with the Islamic Emirate government. “We are not silent. We have fenced the border (with Afghanistan), and it will continue,” Qureshi said in response