Iranian Ambassador Announces Taliban Agreement on Border Wall Construction With Iran

Citing security sources, the reports claim that two senior Taliban commanders were among those killed in the exchange of fire.

The Taliban's Ministry of Defence is yet to comment on the incident or confirm the reported casualties.

Local sources informed Afghanistan International that the skirmish occurred for the second time in a week in the Zazi Maidan district of Khost province, in which both sides reportedly used heavy weaponry during the confrontation.

According to Geo News and Radio Pakistan, the Taliban allegedly launched an attack on Pakistani military checkpoints. Afghan sources also reported that a Taliban-fired mortar shell struck a security post in Kurram Agency, injuring five individuals, including a Pakistani military officer.

The Pakistani military has not confirmed any casualties among its personnel.
State-run Radio Pakistan accused the Afghan Taliban of aiding "terrorist attacks against Pakistan" and "violating internationally recognised borders”.

Afghanistan does not recognise the Durand Line as an official border, referring to it as a "hypothetical line”. The lack of an agreed-upon border between the two countries has been cited as a major factor in the recurring border clashes between Taliban and Pakistani forces.

In the last three years, Taliban and Pakistani forces have clashed multiple times, often over disputes regarding the construction of security posts along the border.

Mousavi predicted that these countries would eventually agree to allow consular services of the embassies to operate in coordination with the Taliban.

On Sunday, Zalmai Rasul, Afghanistan's ambassador to the United Kingdom announced that, at the host government's request, the Afghan embassy in London will be closed on September 27.

Recently, Germany’s Foreign Ministry acknowledged initiating official correspondence with the Taliban's Foreign Ministry. The country has also asked the Afghan embassy and consulate in Berlin and Bonn to establish relations with the Taliban.

Mousavi, an Iranian diplomat, believes that the closure of the Afghan embassy in London could mark the beginning of the shutdown of other Afghan embassies still managed by representatives of the previous Afghan government.

Some of these embassies have issued statements opposing the Taliban and have lobbied against the group with host governments.

The statement notes that representatives from various countries, organisations, and the Taliban will be invited. However, the Taliban’s Prime Minister's Office (ARG), in a post on the social media platform X, did not specify the meeting's location or timing.

Afghanistan International has learned that the meeting is likely to be held next month in Dubai. Sources describe this gathering as another effort to engage with the Taliban, which the group plans to push for its official recognition during the event. Pro-Taliban organisations are also said to be promoting related proposals.

The Taliban confirmed that Abdul Kabir, the group's Deputy Prime Minister for Political Affairs, and Roza Otunbayeva discussed the meeting at the Arg in Kabul on Wednesday. Otunbayeva emphasised on the need for significant action to eradicate poppy cultivation and promote alternative crops.

The statement also mentions that Otunbayeva recently visited southern Afghanistan to further discuss the matter with Abdul Kabir. She is expected to present UNAMA's quarterly report on Afghanistan to the UN Security Council.

During the meeting, Abdul Kabir claimed that the Taliban prohibits the cultivation or harvesting of drugs in Afghanistan. He called for international support in combating drug production and urged UNAMA to present the "facts and progress" in Afghanistan to the UN Security Council.

The Security Council is scheduled to meet in September, where a representative from the United Nations in Afghanistan will be present.

Gandapur said that even if the government does not grant permission, he will, as the Chief Minister, direct tribal elders to engage in talks with the Taliban.

On Thursday, during a meeting with tribal leaders and party representatives, Gandapur emphasised that peace in this province depends on a peaceful Afghanistan. He stressed on the need for a clear policy and timeline to eradicate militancy in the region.

Gandapur acknowledged that a provincial high-level committee meeting will soon be convened to begin peace talks with the Taliban. He added that no war can be won without the support of the people and the government must conduct military operations against militants in coordination with the people of the province.

He also highlighted the importance of consulting tribal communities on security issues and taking action to resolve them.

Gandapur who is a member of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, criticised Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's policies towards tribal areas and called the legal actions against PTI leaders unjust.

Earlier, on Thursday Pakistan's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, stated in a press conference that the use of Afghan territory to promote terrorism against neighbouring countries is not just Pakistan's concern.

She added that Pakistan has provided evidence of terrorist group hideouts in Afghanistan.

The spokesperson further mentioned that recent UN reports have highlighted the activities of terrorist groups in Afghanistan and urged the Afghan Taliban to take action against them, ensuring these groups do not target Pakistan.

According to the sources, Germany has entered negotiations with the Taliban regarding the status of diplomats from the previous government.

Previously, a German media outlet revealed, based on official documents, that Germany’s Foreign Ministry accepted the Taliban's move to invalidate the services of Afghanistan’s embassy and consulate in Berlin and Bonn. The outlet reported that Berlin had communicated with the Taliban's foreign ministry in Kabul regarding this matter.

On July 30, the Taliban’s foreign ministry announced that the consular services of 14 Afghan missions that do not cooperate with the Taliban were no longer valid. This list includes the Afghan embassy in Berlin and the Afghan consulate in Bonn.

German media outlet Deutsche Welle reported that Germany’s Foreign Ministry, in an official notice to the acting foreign minister in Kabul, accepted that Afghan consular services would be limited to the Munich mission, which collaborates with the Taliban.

Although Germany does not officially recognise the Taliban, it appears to be under public pressure to deport Afghans with criminal records to Afghanistan, leading to a possible consular engagement with the Taliban.