Torkham Border To Reopen After Month-Long Closure, Says Taliban Official

Speaking after a high-level security meeting, Asif stated that Pakistan would not hesitate to track and eliminate its enemies wherever necessary. He insisted that a lenient approach would compromise national security.

On Tuesday, senior security and political officials in Pakistan held an emergency meeting at Parliament House. They discussed growing security threats, particularly attacks by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Baloch separatists in Balochistan. Following the meeting, Asif told Geo News that Pakistan was prepared to act against its enemies wherever they may be.

He accused the Afghan Taliban of failing to prevent TTP from using Afghan territory to launch attacks against Pakistan. He claimed that Taliban officials in Kabul and other centres of power were preoccupied with internal disputes, leaving Pakistan with no choice but to act independently.

Asif made it clear that Pakistan would not tolerate the presence of militant groups in Afghanistan. He stated that anyone arguing against pursuing these groups was acting against Pakistan’s national interests.

Former Prime Minister Imran Khan has repeatedly criticised the Pakistani government’s confrontational stance towards the Afghan Taliban. He recently argued that Afghanistan is not Pakistan’s enemy and should not be treated as such.

During Khan’s tenure, the Taliban regained power in Afghanistan, with his government playing a significant role in facilitating their return. However, tensions between Pakistan and the Taliban have since escalated, particularly over Islamabad’s accusations that Afghan soil is being used to shelter anti-Pakistan militants.

On Tuesday, Afghan Jirga members told Afghanistan International that the Taliban has not accepted Islamabad’s condition to stop building facilities near the border. Pakistani Jirga members had urged the Taliban to suspend construction to allow the reopening of the crossing. Afghan representatives stated that they had relayed Pakistan’s request to the Taliban, but no agreement has been reached.

One Afghan Jirga member said, “The Taliban governor only mentioned that he would consult with his leaders, but local Taliban officials do not agree on halting the construction.”

Meanwhile, Taliban-affiliated media outlets, including Hurriyat, reported that Pakistan’s main condition for reopening the border is stopping military facility construction on Afghan soil. Taliban officials have called this condition a violation of national and international principles, labelling it interference in Afghanistan’s internal affairs.

Syed Jawad Hussain Kazemi, head of Pakistan’s negotiating delegation, confirmed that discussions had taken place and they were now awaiting the Taliban’s response.

The Taliban has not officially commented on Pakistan’s demands. Islamabad closed the border due to the Taliban’s construction of checkpoints and other facilities. Since the closure, multiple clashes between Taliban forces and Pakistani border guards have been reported.

On Tuesday, March 18, reports revealed that the Interior Ministry had informed Leif-Erik Holm, a representative of the nationalist AfD party, about the plan.

Heiko Teggatz, head of the German Federal Police Union, voiced concerns about resettlement programs. He claimed that NGOs were encouraging Afghans to participate and advising them on ways to mislead authorities.

The Interior Ministry reiterated that no new refugee acceptance promises had been made. A ministry spokesperson stated that ongoing resettlement programs include support for local staff and at-risk individuals under the human rights framework.

Criticism of Germany’s refugee policy has increased following the recent transfer of 287 Afghans on two flights from Islamabad to Berlin.

The German government has not clarified whether additional flights will be arranged for the 2,800 Afghan refugees still waiting to enter the country.

According to the report, 396,000 of these refugees hold valid residence documents, including refugee cards, work permits, and passports. However, at least 200,000 Afghan refugees in the province lack legal documentation. IRNA estimates that this number could rise to 300,000.

The report noted that Afghan migration to Razavi Khorasan increased significantly after the Taliban took power in 2021. By mid-2023, around 400,000 documented Afghan refugees were residing in Mashhad, the province’s capital.

Iranian authorities have also recorded the daily return of 300 to 350 undocumented Afghan refugees from Razavi Khorasan to Afghanistan.

In recent months, Iran has intensified restrictions on Afghan migrants. Authorities have banned them from employment and renting homes in several cities, further increasing the pressure on Afghan refugees living in the country.

The directive also orders all radio stations to refer to Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada as the “Esteemed Amir al-Mu’minin, may Allah protect him.” Additionally, media outlets must refer to the Taliban government as the “Islamic Emirate.”

The restrictions extend beyond content regulations. Advertisements for medicine, cosmetic products, and healthcare services are now banned unless officially approved by the Directorate of Public Health. Radio employees traveling within Kandahar for reporting or programming purposes must also obtain prior authorisation from the Directorate of Information and Culture.

The AFJC condemned the new measures, calling them an escalation in the Taliban’s suppression of independent media. “Until now, no media outlet in Kandahar or any other province had been officially and publicly required to refer to the Taliban leader with such formal titles,” the organisation stated.

Previously, media outlets in Kandahar could still air some content featuring women, especially programmes produced in Kabul. However, with this new directive, Kandahar has become the second province, after Helmand, where the Taliban has officially banned women’s voices in the media.

Kandahar lacks local television networks. The national television station that once operated there was shut down and converted into a radio station due to Taliban-imposed restrictions on broadcasting living being images.

The AFJC denounced the latest measures, describing them as further proof of the Taliban’s increasing crackdown on press freedom in Afghanistan.