Doha, Oct 19 – Afghanistan and Pakistan have agreed to stop fighting at once, after more than a week of heavy clashes that left scores of soldiers and civilians dead or wounded. The ceasefire was announced by Qatar’s foreign ministry on Sunday, with Pakistan and Afghanistan committed to keep the peace and talk soon to make the stop‑the‑fight lasting.
Both sides were in Doha for talks that Qatar and Turkey helped organise. Defence ministers from Kabul and Islamabad led the discussions. Pakistan said it wants quick steps to stop cross‑border attacks that it says come from Afghanistan and to bring calm back to the shared border. Afghanistan denied that it shelters any armed groups that attack its neighbour.
The standoff began when Pakistan carried out air strikes on Kabul earlier this week. Since then, Pakistan and Afghanistan have blamed each other for new attacks. Pakistan has accused Afghan militants of firing on Pakistani villages, while Kabul insists it has no role in such violence.
Before the ceasefire, a Pakistani strike on Afghanistan’s Paktika province on Oct. 18 killed three Afghan cricketers—Kabeer, Sibghatullah and Haroon—who were on their way to a friendly match. The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) confirmed the players’ names and said five more civilians died. In a move of respect, the ACB announced it would skip the Tri‑Nation T20I Series that was set to take place later in November.
The temporary truce that had been in place for 48 hours ended Friday evening. Just hours later, Pakistan launched new air strikes, sparking fresh violence. The fresh ceasefire agreement now brings a pause to that fighting, but both governments will use the next few days to set up mechanisms that can keep the border calm for good.
Source: ianslive
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