Pakistan and Afghanistan agree to 48-hour ceasefire

Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to a “temporary ceasefire” after airstrikes and ground clashes killed more than a dozen civilians, officials said.

Clashes along the volatile and contested border on Wednesday shattered the fragile peace following weekend clashes that left dozens dead, the worst incident between the two countries since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in 2021.

In the statement made by Pakistan’s foreign ministry, it was stated that the two countries decided to implement a 48-hour “temporary ceasefire” starting from 18:00 local time on Wednesday.

“During this period, both sides will make sincere efforts to find a positive solution to this complex but solvable problem through constructive dialogue,” the statement said. In the statement, it was stated that the ceasefire was accepted at the request of the Afghan government.

Afghan Taliban administration spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said that the ceasefire agreement was the result of “the request and insistence of the Pakistani side”.

He stated that Afghanistan has instructed all its forces to observe the ceasefire on the condition that the other side does not engage in aggression.

The latest rift between the two former allies erupted after Pakistan demanded that the Afghan Taliban government combat militants who have stepped up attacks in Pakistan and said these militants were operating from sanctuaries in Afghanistan.

The Taliban denies the charge and accuses the Pakistani military of conspiring against Afghanistan by spreading misinformation, provoking border tensions and harboring Islamic State-linked militants to undermine the country’s stability and sovereignty.

The Pakistani military denies the accusations and points to attacks in Pakistan by Islamic State Khorasan, the regional arm of the Islamic State group operating in neighboring countries.