Conflict on the Border of Afghanistan and Pakistan
According to Afghan media reports, the spokesman for the Ministry of Defense of the Afghan interim government Inayatullah Khwarezmi, reported that clashes broke out between the border forces of the two countries in the Gorkai area near the Torkham Border Gate in Nangerhar province in the afternoon. Khwarezmi explained that the Pakistani forces opened fire first on the Afghan border forces while they were trying to build a new checkpoint on the border line, and that the Afghan forces immediately retaliated.
It is stated that civilians living in the region where the conflict occurred were forced to leave their homes and the Torkham Border Gate was closed due to the conflict. On the other hand, the spokesman for the Ministry of Interior of the Afghan interim government Abdul Metin Kani, In a post he shared on the X social media platform, he announced that Pakistani forces opened fire on civilians and that a total of 3 Afghan citizens, 2 of whom were children and 1 woman, lost their lives in this incident.
History of Border Issues
Border problems between the two countries began between May 6 and August 8, 1919, when the then Emirate of Afghanistan occupied some regions of India, which was a colony of Great Britain at the time. Third Anglo-Afghan WarAs a result of this war, Afghanistan gained full independence and the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan was determined in 1893, which is known today as the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. Durand LineIt took its final shape and was accepted as the official border.
Although Pakistan, which gained its independence in 1947, recognized the Durand Line as an international border, subsequent Afghan governments have not accepted this border. This situation has occasionally led to armed conflicts and tensions between the two countries. The Durand Line, which was not recognized by previous Afghan governments, is also not accepted by the current Afghan administration.
Short-term border tensions between the parties are usually calmed down by the intervention of high-level officials; However, a permanent solution to the border problems has not yet been found.
