Pakistani and Afghan troops exchanged fire at dozens of points along their border on Friday as the United Nations (UN) said their week-old conflict has forced the displacement of more than 100 000 people.
The South Asian nations show no signs of rapprochement in their worst fighting in years, adding to the volatility in a region also contending with United States and Israeli strikes on Iran, a nation that borders both Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Combat has included Pakistani air strikes on Taliban government installations, such as the Bagram air base north of the Afghan capital Kabul.
Afghanistan’s Ministry of Defense said Taliban forces struck Pakistani military installations along the 2 600 kilometres border, destroying numerous posts and shooting down a drone.
Pakistani security sources said they carried out ground and air operations against military targets including Kandahar, the heartland of the Taliban and where its core leadership resides, and destroyed several Afghan border posts.
Dozens gathered in Kabul on Friday to protest Pakistan’s attacks on Afghan territory, chanting anti-Pakistan slogans, a witness said, while the Bakhter news agency said a large gathering in Laghman Province demonstrated against Pakistan’s recent attacks.
People living in border towns have told Reuters that troops begin exchanging heavy shelling after sunset, placing homes in the firing line just as families sit down to break their fast in the holy month of Ramadan. Several said relatives and neighbours have fled.
–Reuters–
