Pakistan shares details of Afghan losses, Kabul denies

• Frontier Corps says 50 Afghan soldiers killed, over 100 injured, as army destroys five Afghan checkpoints
• Afghan Interior Ministry claims two border policemen, one ‘civilian’ killed, 41 wounded
• Pakistan Army also announces border closure from Chaman for indefinite period

Inspector General of Frontier Corps of Balochistan Major General Nadeem Anjum on Sunday said that as many as 50 Afghan security personnel were killed and another 100 injured as Pakistani forces retaliated to unprovoked firing from the other side of the border on civilians and security personnel in Chaman area last week.

“We are not happy over their losses since they are our Muslim brothers,” he said while briefing journalists over a recent cross-border attack in Chaman, in which 12 people were killed and over 40 injured when Afghan forces opened fire on security personnel guarding a census team, although Afghanistan had been informed of the exercise in advance.

On the other hand, Afghan Ministry of Interior Affairs spokesperson Najib Danish denied a report by Pakistan that 50 Afghan forces were killed in a border skirmish last week. The border fight erupted in the past few days in Kandahar province and ended with both sides announcing a ceasefire, he said.

He claimed that fighting killed two Afghan border policemen and wounded 11 others. One ‘civilian’ died and 30 others were hurt in the rocket attacks from the Pakistani forces, he said, without further details. The Frontier Corps chief also confirmed that about five check posts were also destroyed when Pakistani border guards retaliated to the cross-border attack.

On May 5, Afghanistan pleaded for ceasefire, which Pakistan accepted, Maj-General Anjum said. He said that Afghan authorities targeted civilians even though they had been informed about the on-going census exercise. Earlier, Southern Command Commander Lt-General Aamir Riaz termed the cross-border attack as shameful.

“This was a shameful act to target civilians at the border villages of Pakistan,” he told journalists at Chaman during a visit to the area. He said that Afghanistan would not benefit from such attacks in any way and that the Afghan government should be ashamed of such acts.

He also said that the border would remain closed till Afghanistan changes its behaviour. He also confirmed that the Pakistan army destroyed four to five Afghan posts following the Afghan forces’ attempt to enter Pakistan. “Anyone who tries to make Pakistan’s territory disputed will face similar consequences,” he said.

The commander said that attempts to enter Pakistan were foolish mistake, which was not beneficial for both the countries. The Frontier Corps chief also pointed out that the Afghan forces targeted civilians and used children as human shields. “Nevertheless, we did not feel jubilant at the losses inflicted on the other side as Afghans are our brothers,” he told a questioner.

He said that the entire responsibility of the incident lies with the Afghan forces. Any such aggression in future would result in a twofold and similar reaction, he said, and went on to add that the incident was a result of Afghan-India collusion. “We want to make it clear that Pakistan’s international border is non-negotiable and no compromise will be made on it,” he told another questioner.

“We are thankful to the tribes of Chaman who extended cooperation to the security forces in the time-testing situation. The attack caused the border to be closed again indefinitely while a curfew was imposed in Torkham bazaar as a preemptive measure,” he said. On Saturday, Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif made it clear that Pakistan would respond instantly and effectively in a befitting way to border violations.

The incident occurred in the Killi Luqman and Killi Jahangir villages of Chaman, which straddle the border and have been a source of controversy between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Kabul claims the villages are part of the Spin Boldak district, an assertion Pakistan flatly denies. Both the sides rushed reinforcements to the border and Pakistani authorities closed the Chaman crossing indefinitely once again.

Talking to a Pakistani media delegation, Pakistan’s Chargé d’Affaires in Afghanistan Shahbaz Hussain reiterated Pakistan’s position that a stable Afghanistan was inevitable for achieving the goal of regional connectivity. Afghanistan has not responded positively to Pakistan’s proposals for promotion of trade, he said.

He said that the seventh meeting of the Afghanistan-Pakistan Transit Trade coordination authority has been delayed due to Afghanistan. To a question, he said that the anti-Pakistan mindset in Afghanistan was due to external elements. The anti-Pakistan statements by Afghan leadership cast negative impact, he said, adding that the Pakistani consulate is issuing visas to three thousand Afghans daily.