Pakistan Agrees to Afghan Taliban’s Request for Temporary Ceasefire

By Nasir Aijaz
The AsiaN Representative

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban have agreed to a temporary 48-hour ceasefire on the request of the Afghan Taliban regime, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Wednesday.

“At the request of the Afghan Taliban regime, and with mutual consent, Pakistan and the Taliban have agreed to a temporary ceasefire for 48 hours, effective from 6pm this evening,” the Foreign Office (FO) said in a statement.

During this period, the FO said, both sides will engage in constructive dialogue aimed at finding a “positive and sustainable resolution” to this issue.

The development comes shortly after the Pakistan Army, as per the security sources, carried out precision strikes against key Taliban positions in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province, successfully destroying multiple strongholds in response to recent aggression.

According to the reports, the operations targeted Taliban Battalion No 4 and Border Brigade No 6, both of which were completely destroyed during the strikes. The attacks resulted in the deaths of dozens of Taliban militants and foreign operatives, the sources confirmed.

Meanwhile, the Afghan Taliban shared a video on social media showing a tank. The impression was given that a T-55 tank had been captured from the Pakistan Army. However, the security sources clarified that the Russian-made T-55 tank shown in the footage is, in fact, operated by the Afghan Taliban themselves.

Simultaneously, militants attempted to infiltrate Pakistan through the Turkmenzai border area in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Mohmand district. The infiltration attempt was aimed at launching terrorist activities inside Pakistan, the media reports said. Pakistani forces however timely and forceful response thwarted the plot.

A major formation sent from across the border was completely destroyed in Mohmand, where at least 30 militants were killed, the reports added.

Security forces also repelled an unprovoked attack launched by the Afghan Taliban in the Spin Boldak area of Balochistan in the early hours of October 15, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.

The statement further said that the Afghan Taliban also destroyed Pak-Afghan Friendship Gate on their side, a move the ISPR said clearly displays the mindset with regards to mutual trade and easement rights of the divided tribes.

While repulsing the attack, 15 to 20 Afghan Taliban have been killed and many injured, the ISPR said.

The ISPR further stated that the Spin Boldak incident was not isolated, noting that on the night of October 14 and 15, Afghan Taliban and ‘Fitna al-Khawarij’ (A name given to alleged Indian terrorists) tried to attack Pakistani border posts in the Kurram Sector in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The military’s media wing says these attacks were effectively repulsed, causing heavy losses to Afghan posts.

“Eight [Afghan] posts, including six tanks, were destroyed in the effective yet proportionate response of Pakistani troops. 25-30 Afghan Taliban and Fitna Al Khawarij fighters were suspected to have been killed,” the statement added.

Islamabad and Kabul are witnessing heightened tensions amid the interim Afghan government’s reluctance to act against terrorist groups, operating from Afghan soil, in the backdrop of rising terror attacks in Pakistan.

The country has witnessed a surge in cross-border terror incidents since Taliban rulers returned to Afghanistan in 2021, particularly in the bordering provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhaw and Balochistan.

The two nations share a porous border spanning around 2,500 kilometers with several crossing points, which holds significance as a key element of regional trade and relations between the people across both sides of the border.