Taliban & Pakistani Border Forces Clash As Urumqi Talks Continue

Yousuf Hammad, spokesperson for the Taliban’s disaster management authority, said on Thursday, April 2, in a video that heavy rain and flooding had continued over the past 24 hours in 18 provinces.

He said the rainfall had caused floods that completely destroyed 348 homes, while a further 798 houses were damaged.

Flooding also damaged 244 kilometres of roads and 3,048 hectares of agricultural land across various provinces. According to the authority, 201 families have been displaced.

The provinces affected include Kabul, Panjshir, Paktika, Khost, Logar, Maidan Wardak, Ghazni, Kandahar, Zabul, Uruzgan, Herat, Faryab, Badghis, Jawzjan, Baghlan, Badakhshan, Nangarhar and Laghman.

Abdul Qahar Balkhi, spokesperson for the Taliban Foreign Ministry, said in a statement on Thursday, April 2, that the talks are being held at China’s request and based on mutual respect and constructive engagement with Pakistan.

He said the Taliban delegation would take part based on a balanced and principled approach and intends to hold comprehensive and responsible discussions with the other side on good neighbourly relations, strengthening trade ties and the effective management of security issues.

Balkhi added that the Taliban believe diplomatic engagement grounded in mutual respect, non-interference and constructive understanding can provide practical and lasting solutions to existing issues with Pakistan and help create conditions for stability and cooperation in the region.

At the same time, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said a delegation of senior officials had been sent to Urumqi for talks with the Afghan Taliban. He said the delegation is there to explore a sustainable solution to cross-border terrorism from Afghanistan.

Informed sources in the Taliban Foreign Ministry told Afghanistan International on Wednesday that the group had sought China’s help to bring Pakistan to the negotiating table.

Sources said Azimi, imam of the Sayyid al-Shuhada Mosque in Jebrail and a member of Herat’s Shia Ulema Council, was detained on Wednesday afternoon before prayers by Taliban intelligence and morality police officers.

There is still no information about his whereabouts, and his relatives have been unable to contact him.

Azimi had previously been arrested by the Taliban in late 2024.

It is reported that his earlier detention, after which he was released on bail following mediation by community elders, was linked to his protest against Taliban restrictions on Ashura ceremonies.

Sources in Herat also said the Taliban have recently detained several other Shia clerics for holding Eid prayers.

Previously, the Taliban had forced people in various provinces to observe Eid prayers a day earlier in line with the group’s announcement.

Speaking at a press conference in St Petersburg on Wednesday, April 1, he said Uzbekistan is Russia’s partner within the Commonwealth of Independent States and an important partner in developing ties with Afghanistan. "We are building a partnership to develop the Afghan-Trans corridor," he said.

The Russian official added that there are many projects in Uzbekistan and Russia expects its companies to take part in them. Nikitin specifically referred to the Afghan-Trans railway project.

Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev had earlier signed an international agreement on a feasibility study for the Afghan-Trans railway project.

The agreement outlines a framework for a regional transport corridor linking Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and Pakistan.

Tahir Andrabi said the delegation is in Urumqi to explore a “sustainable solution” to stop cross-border terrorism from Afghanistan.

Speaking at a weekly briefing on Thursday, Andrabi said the talks between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban were being held at a working level and led by senior officials. He did not provide details on which officials were involved or how long the talks would continue.

He said the discussions reiterated Islamabad’s core concerns, adding that responsibility for meaningful progress lay with Afghanistan, which must take visible and verifiable action against militant groups using its territory to target Pakistan.

Andrabi also said Pakistan’s “Ghazab lil Haq” operation would continue alongside the talks.

Diplomatic sources had earlier told Afghanistan International that a new round of talks between the Taliban and Pakistan was taking place in Urumqi. According to the sources, participants include Pakistan’s deputy foreign minister and Taliban officials from the ministries of foreign affairs, defence, interior and intelligence.

Andrabi also referred to the recent visit of Pakistan’s foreign minister to China, during which the two sides discussed tensions with the Taliban and China’s call for an immediate halt to the fighting.

Tensions between Pakistan and the Taliban have escalated since late February, following Pakistani strikes in Kabul and Kandahar and retaliatory attacks by Taliban forces.

China has stepped in as a mediator amid concerns over regional stability and its economic interests, including the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and potential Belt and Road projects in Afghanistan.