Pakistan and Afghanistan were once more drawn into a deadly border confrontation late Friday night, with officials on both sides accusing each other of igniting “unprovoked” hostilities despite a fragile truce brokered earlier this year.

Fighting broke out in Pakistan’s southwestern Chaman border region, opposite Afghanistan’s Spin Boldak district. According to an AFP dispatch, residents inside Afghanistan reported that gunfire and shelling began at approximately 10:30 p.m. (1800 GMT) and continued for nearly two hours.

The latest exchange highlighted how volatile relations remain between the neighboring countries, which have witnessed several deadly skirmishes in recent months. Negotiations mediated by Qatar and Türkiye yielded a tenuous cease-fire in October, but the frontline has remained tense and unpredictable.

A Pakistani security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, accused Afghan forces of initiating the confrontation.

“There has been unprovoked firing by Afghan elements in the Chaman Sector, which is a reckless act that undermines border stability and regional peace,” the official said.

He added that Pakistani troops issued a “precise and calibrated” response, stressing that “any violation of our territorial integrity will be met with immediate and decisive action.”

According to the official, Pakistan’s reaction reflected “professionalism even in the face of aggression,” but also served as a firm message: “Attempts to pressure Pakistan through kinetic adventurism have repeatedly failed and will continue to fail.”

The official urged Kabul to rein in what he described as “undisciplined border elements,” arguing that their actions were destabilizing not only the region but Afghanistan’s own “international standing.”

Relations between Islamabad and Kabul have deteriorated sharply since the Islamic Emirate assumed power in August 2021 after the withdrawal of international forces. Pakistan accuses the Afghan administration of allowing anti-Pakistan militant groups — including the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) — to operate from Afghan soil. These groups have carried out a wave of deadly attacks across Pakistan’s western border regions.

The Islamic Emirate strongly denies harboring such groups, insisting that Pakistan’s security issues are internal and self-generated.

Mosharraf Zaidi, spokesman for Pakistan’s prime minister, echoed the security establishment’s stance in a social media post, saying Afghan forces had “resorted to unprovoked firing along the border” and that a “befitting and intense response” had been delivered by Pakistan’s armed forces.

Afghan authorities, however, offered a starkly different account.

“Unfortunately, tonight, the Pakistani side started attacking Afghanistan in Kandahar, Spin Boldak district, and the forces of the Islamic Emirate were forced to respond,” spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on X.

Border clashes that first escalated in October have already killed dozens on both sides, fueling fears that the situation could spiral unless both governments recommit to dialogue.

The latest incident occurs amid unconfirmed reports of back-channel communications between Islamabad and Kabul. Neither side has publicly acknowledged such talks, but the renewed violence underscores the urgent need for sustained diplomacy to prevent further escalation along one of the region’s most sensitive frontiers. (ILKHA)