8 Afghan Taliban soldiers killed in border clash with Pakistani forces

 Islamabad/Peshawar:  At least eight Afghan Taliban soldiers, including two key commanders, have been killed in a fierce clash with the Pakistani security forces in the border region near the restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

 The exchange, which was reported in the Khurram border district of the province over the weekend, also injured 16 Afghan Taliban soldiers.

 The Afghan side attacked a Pakistani checkpost with heavy weapons in the Palosin area on the Pak-Afghan border on Saturday morning, the Dawn newspaper reported, quoting sources.

 “We have reports about heavy losses on the other [Afghan] side. So far, eight Afghan Taliban have been killed, and 16 others have sustained injuries in retaliatory firing by the Pakistani forces,” sources said, adding that two ‘key’ commanders were also killed.

 There was no official word on the incident from the Pakistan military’s media wing – the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

 This is not the first time Afghan troops have opened fire on Pakistani security forces posted at the border.

 In the past, Islamabad shared its concerns with Kabul over such incidents.

 The Afghan Taliban, apart from facilitating militant activities inside Pakistan, were now openly attacking the forces along the international border, sources said.

 Due to the tense security situation, trade between the two countries remained suspended over the weekend.

 There were reports of intermittent firing on the border on Sunday as well, but no casualties were reported.

 Meanwhile, a paramilitary Frontier Corps (FC) official was killed, and three others sustained injuries in a militant attack in the Marghan area of central Kurram on Sunday.

In May, the Foreign Office conveyed its concerns to Kabul after a large number of locals were displaced in the Kharlachi border crossing and sought shelter in safer places in the wake of clashes between the two neighbouring countries.

 At the time, tribal elders from Kurram and the Afghan side played a role in defusing the tensions. However, clashes on the border had prompted large-scale displacement from villages and settlements near the Kharlachi border crossing.

 Kharlachi crossing connects Pakistan’s northwestern Kunnar tribal district with Afghanistan’s eastern Paktia province.