After a ten-day hiatus following the last border skirmish between the Taliban and Pakistani military forces, the Torkham border crossing has reopened for traffic.
Sources report that the border crossing reopened today, on Friday, September 15th.
The reopening of this crossing has paved the way for hundreds of travellers who were eagerly awaiting it, along with thousands of cargo vehicles.
Local Taliban officials in Nangarhar had announced the possibility of reopening this port on Friday.
It is reported that the Torkham border crossing has reopened after days of negotiations between the two parties.
Before its closure and as a result of the blockade, traders on both sides incurred losses of up to one million dollars, and some of them resorted to auctioning off their goods, including vegetables and fruits.
Pakistani media have reported that the reopening of this border crossing followed a meeting between Amir Khan Mateqi, the acting Foreign Minister of the Taliban, and Abdul Rahman Nizamani, Pakistan’s Ambassador to Kabul.
The Taliban’s Foreign Ministry announced yesterday that Mateqi and Nizamani had met to discuss border issues and the reopening of the Torkham border crossing.
The Torkham border was closed following clashes between the Taliban and Pakistani forces, resulting in casualties on both sides, including civilians.
Islamabad and the Taliban have accused each other of initiating hostilities, but it has not been definitively determined which side was the instigator of this conflict.
