A key border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan remained closed for the eighth successive day on Wednesday, September 13, causing hardship to traders and leading to protests in both countries. The Torkham border crossing was closed on September 6 after firing from both sides. The death toll from the incident is unclear with some reports saying up to eight people may have died.
Over the past week, hundreds of trucks carrying essential goods have remained stranded on both sides. A number of civilians are also stranded in the heat. The closure of the crossing led to protests by scores of Afghan traders in Nangarhar province on Monday. Wahidullah, a local trader, told Tolo News, that Pakistan regularly closes the pathway, causing a lot of problems in the transportation of goods, especially fruits and vegetables. On Wednesday, traders protested in Pakistan, with participants terming the closure “economic murder,” Dawn reported.
The protesters in both countries asked Pakistani and Afghan authorities to solve their problems through dialogue.
On Monday, Tolo News quoted Afghanistan-Pakistan Joint Chamber of Commerce Khanjan Alokozai as saying that the losses due to the closure were in the range of USD 1 million.
The Torkham pass connects the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan and the Nangarhar province of Afghanistan.
The two sides have been discussing the possibilities of reopening the Torkham pass through negotiations. Earlier, they had blamed each other for the firing. Pakistan accused the Taliban of “building unlawful structures and indiscriminate and unprovoked firing” while the latter denied the claim and said Afghanistan was attacked first, according to media reports.
There is a long history of border disputes between the countries and relations between them have worsened in recent times due to the activity of the extremist Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan.
