Pakistan reports border clashes during talks with Afghanistan

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By Ariba Shahid

KARACHI (Reuters) -Five Pakistani soldiers and 25 militants have died in clashes near the border with Afghanistan, the military said on Sunday, as delegations from both countries met to try to defuse tensions after the deadliest fighting in years.

The militants tried to cross over from Afghanistan on Friday and Saturday in Kurram and North Waziristan districts, rugged areas along Pakistan’s northwestern frontier, the Pakistani military’s media wing said.

It said the attempted infiltrations cast doubt on the intentions of the government in Afghanistan in “regards to addressing the issue of terrorism emanating from its soil”.

In Afghanistan, the Taliban government’s chief spokesman and the defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the reported attacks.

The Taliban denies accusations of sheltering militants and says Pakistan’s military operations violate Afghan sovereignty.

Officials from both countries are meeting in Istanbul to prevent a relapse into conflict after clashes between their armies earlier this month – the worst border fighting since the Taliban’s 2021 takeover of Kabul.

That fighting erupted after Pakistan demanded the Taliban rein in militants it says operate from Afghan sanctuaries, prompting heavy exchanges of fire and Pakistani airstrikes. Both sides reached a truce in Doha last Sunday.

Pakistan’s Defence Minister, Khawaja Asif, said on Saturday the truce was holding and he believed Afghanistan wanted peace. But he warned that failure to reach an agreement in Istanbul would mean “open war”.

Pakistan’s military described the attackers on Friday and Saturday as members of “Fitna al Khwarij” a term it uses for groups it says are inspired by militant ideology and backed by “foreign sponsors”.

(Reporting by Ariba Shahid in Karachi; Editing by Andrew Heavens)