Islamabad: Recent Events afghan-pak border has brought to light the age-old issue of Durand Line which Pakistan hoped to solve Taliban Taking the reins in Kabul.
On Friday, Khama Press news agency reported the second such incident in recent days when local Taliban allies said they prevented Pakistani forces from building barbed wire fences and posts in Afghanistan.
Pakistani military personnel reportedly wanted to build their post on Afghan soil in Chahar Burjak district of Nimroj province. Witnesses and residents of the border district said that the Pakistani army went 15 km inside Afghanistan and wanted to build a check post.
Similarly on 22 December Afghan Taliban The fence built by Pakistan in Nanhar province on the Durand Line was broken.
A Toronto-based think tank, the International Forum for Rights and Security (IFFRAS), said it was an example of a burning wound that continues to bind Afghanistan and Pakistan bilaterally.
The 2,600-km-long Durand Line fencing remains a contentious issue between Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Ashraf Ghani government had objected to the fencing of the border and the Afghan side even then tried to prevent Pakistan from fencing it.
However, Pakistan went ahead with fencing. Pakistani media reports say that 90 percent of the border with Pakistan is now fenced. “The fencing is part of the border mechanism that Pakistan has been working on for years, not only to control the movement of people but also to prevent terrorists from moving freely across the border,” the IFFRAS said.
According to the think-tank, the real reason for Pakistan’s fencing is to divide the country. Pashtuns,
Pashtun as an ethnic group spread between Pak-Afghan border, In Afghanistan, they make up 42 percent of the population. Meanwhile, Pashtuns make up 25 per cent of the population in Pakistan.
Highlighting the irony of how Pashtuns live on both sides of the border, ThinkThank argued that Pakistan has chosen to divide these people by building a fence across the border.
“Pakistan has chosen to recognize the Durand Line, while Afghanistan, in the past and presently, has refused to recognize it as the international boundary between Afghanistan and Pakistan,” the IFFRAS said.
Earlier in September, the Taliban’s position on the Durand Line was expressed by its chief spokesman. Speaking to a Pashto channel in Pakistan, Zabiullah Mujahid had said that the Afghans have opposed the fence built by Pakistan on the Durand Line.
Mujahid said, “The new Afghan government will announce its position on this issue. The fence has divided people and families. We want to create a safe and peaceful environment along the border, so there is no need to create barriers.” ”
On Friday, Khama Press news agency reported the second such incident in recent days when local Taliban allies said they prevented Pakistani forces from building barbed wire fences and posts in Afghanistan.
Pakistani military personnel reportedly wanted to build their post on Afghan soil in Chahar Burjak district of Nimroj province. Witnesses and residents of the border district said that the Pakistani army went 15 km inside Afghanistan and wanted to build a check post.
Similarly on 22 December Afghan Taliban The fence built by Pakistan in Nanhar province on the Durand Line was broken.
A Toronto-based think tank, the International Forum for Rights and Security (IFFRAS), said it was an example of a burning wound that continues to bind Afghanistan and Pakistan bilaterally.
The 2,600-km-long Durand Line fencing remains a contentious issue between Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Ashraf Ghani government had objected to the fencing of the border and the Afghan side even then tried to prevent Pakistan from fencing it.
However, Pakistan went ahead with fencing. Pakistani media reports say that 90 percent of the border with Pakistan is now fenced. “The fencing is part of the border mechanism that Pakistan has been working on for years, not only to control the movement of people but also to prevent terrorists from moving freely across the border,” the IFFRAS said.
According to the think-tank, the real reason for Pakistan’s fencing is to divide the country. Pashtuns,
Pashtun as an ethnic group spread between Pak-Afghan border, In Afghanistan, they make up 42 percent of the population. Meanwhile, Pashtuns make up 25 per cent of the population in Pakistan.
Highlighting the irony of how Pashtuns live on both sides of the border, ThinkThank argued that Pakistan has chosen to divide these people by building a fence across the border.
“Pakistan has chosen to recognize the Durand Line, while Afghanistan, in the past and presently, has refused to recognize it as the international boundary between Afghanistan and Pakistan,” the IFFRAS said.
Earlier in September, the Taliban’s position on the Durand Line was expressed by its chief spokesman. Speaking to a Pashto channel in Pakistan, Zabiullah Mujahid had said that the Afghans have opposed the fence built by Pakistan on the Durand Line.
Mujahid said, “The new Afghan government will announce its position on this issue. The fence has divided people and families. We want to create a safe and peaceful environment along the border, so there is no need to create barriers.” ”
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