Five Pakistani troops killed in gunfire from across Afghan border

At least five Pakistani troops were killed at a border post on Sunday, after militants from across the border in Afghanistan opened fire on them, according to Pakistan’s military.

In a statement, the military’s media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) strongly condemned the attack that took place in the district of Kurram on the border with Afghanistan.

“Militants from inside Afghanistan across the international border opened fire on Pakistani troops in Kurram district,” the ISPR statement noted.

One of the deadliest such incidents in recent years, and the second since the Taliban swept to power in Afghanistan last August, Sunday’s attack has again put spotlight on the fragile border security between the two neighboring South Asian countries.

“Pakistan strongly condemns the use of Afghan soil by terrorists for activities against Pakistan and expects that [the] interim Afghan government will not allow conduct of such activities against Pakistan, in future,” the army said.

Pakistan will defend its borders against “the menace of terrorism,” the statement said, adding that the sacrifices of “our brave men further strengthen our resolve.”

The Pakistani military did not specify which group was behind Sunday’s attack but officials have long maintained that fighters of the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) are sheltering in Afghanistan and carrying out operations from there.

The statement said the Pakistani army had retaliated, causing heavy casualties on the other side.

Pakistani Taliban ends ceasefire

Pakistan-based Taliban, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, has unilaterally announced an end to a ceasefire with the government.

“As per its promises, the Taliban government should stop such cross-border militant attacks,” said Pakistan’s Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad in a separate statement on Sunday, addressing the Taliban administrators in Afghanistan, who denied that the firing came from the Afghan territory.

Ahmed told reporters that while Pakistan was reluctant to close its doors on dialogue for good, its security forces were ready to respond appropriately to armed groups.

Afghan government deputy spokesman, Bilal Karimi, in a statement said “no one” will be allowed to use Afghanistan’s soil against the neighboring countries.

“We assure other countries, especially our neighbors, that no one will be allowed to use Afghan land against them,” he said, as quoted by Reuters.

The militant group has reportedly escalated its attacks on Pakistani forces since it unilaterally abandoned a months-long ceasefire agreement – brokered by the Afghan Taliban.

The Taliban consist of separate militant groups scattered across Afghanistan and Pakistan that share a common ideology. However, they represent two distinct groups with separate leadership structures and objectives.

In March 2017, Pakistan began fencing its 2,600-kilometre (1600-mile) border with Afghanistan to restrict the movement of militants between the two countries and to end cross-border incursions.

Pertinently, Sunday’s incident came a day after Pakistani forces reported that at least 20 rebels and nine soldiers were killed in three days of operations after local Balochistan Liberation Army insurgents carried out attacks on two army posts in restive Balochistan province.

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