UN urges ‘lasting’ ceasefire after Pakistan-Afghanistan clashes kill dozens

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Fragile ceasefire continues to hold despite clashes that killed dozens on both sides before the truce took effect.

The United Nations has called on the warring Afghan and Pakistani military forces to permanently end hostilities, after a 48-hour ceasefire took effect following days of skirmishes that killed dozens and injured more than 100 others.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) welcomed the announcement of a ceasefire and called on all parties “to bring a lasting end to hostilities to protect civilians and prevent further loss of life”.

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It also urged both Afghanistan and Pakistan to comply with their obligations under international law “to prevent” more civilian casualties.

The recent deadly clashes between the two neighbouring countries and former allies erupted last week after Pakistan struck targets inside Afghanistan, including in the capital Kabul.

Pakistan had been demanding that the Afghan Taliban administration act to rein in armed groups who had stepped up attacks in Pakistan, saying they operated from havens in Afghanistan.

In retaliation for the attacks, Afghan forces attacked Pakistani soldiers, accusing them of violating their territory.

The Taliban has accused the Pakistani military of spreading misinformation about Afghanistan, provoking border tensions, and sheltering ISIL (ISIS)-linked groups to undermine the country’s stability and sovereignty.

On Thursday, Karimullah Zubair Agha, director of public health in Afghanistan’s Spin Boldak, said clashes along the border areas killed 40 civilians just shortly before a truce took effect on Wednesday.

“We have 170 wounded and 40 killed, all civilians,” the official told the AFP news agency.

The fighting along the volatile, contested frontier has been described as the worst violence between the two nations since the Taliban seized power in Kabul in 2021 after the United States’s withdrawal.

In its latest statement on Thursday, UNAMA said it received “credible reports of significant civilian casualties” including women and children, just shortly before the ceasefire.

Most of the casualties were reportedly from the Spin Boldak district of Kandahar, UNAMA said, confirming at least 17 civilians killed and as many as 346 others injured.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s military has claimed that they have foiled an attempt by suspected Pakistan Taliban fighters to take advantage of the ceasefire and launch an attack on government forces in the border province of Ķhyber Pakhtunkhawa.

The military claimed that dozens of Pakistan Taliban fighters, know by the acronym TTP, were killed in the attack.

Perilous deportation for Afghan refugees?

As the fragile ceasefire continues to hold on Thursday, Pakistan has ordered the closure of Afghan refugee camps within its border.

Al Jazeera’s Kamal Hyder, reporting from Pakistan’s Torkham Crossing just across the border from Afghanistan, said that the UNHCR have expressed “deep concern” about the decision that could strip Afghans of their refugee status.

“People say they have been living here for decades, and their livelihoods are at stake,” Hyder said, adding that Afghans are demanding a “dignified return” back to their home country.

Hyder noted that there are an estimated two million Afghan refugees who fled to Pakistan during previous wars, and ordering them to leave within the next seven days could trigger an “enormous” refugee problem, and put many “in a very difficult predicament”.

For now, residents along the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan are hoping that the ceasefire will be extended beyond its original 48-hour timeframe, but the situation on the ground makes it difficult to see how that can be achieved, Hyder noted.

“But everybody is still hoping that the conflict will end and that the two sides will be able to resolve the key issues,” he said.

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