ISLAMABAD/ HANGU/ QUETTA: Pakistan and Afghanistan will be holding their second round of talks in Istanbul today (Saturday) with Islamabad saying it looks forward to the establishment of a concrete and verifiable monitoring mechanism in the meeting which will be hosted by Turkiye, to address the menace of terrorism emanating from Afghan soil towards Pakistan and prevent any further loss of life of Pakistanis.
The spokesperson at the Foreign Office during the weekly media briefing on Friday said that earlier Pakistan had welcomed the agreement between Pakistan and Afghanistan, finalised in Doha, Qatar on 19th October 2025, as a first step in ensuring regional peace and stability. “We deeply appreciate the constructive role played by brotherly countries, Qatar and Turkiye.”
However, it was rather perplexing that when questioned he was not ready to share the members of Pakistan delegation which is already in Ankara. Despite being asked several times he shrugged the query off.
Giving details of Saturday’s fresh round of talks he said, “The agreement came as the result of delegation-level talks held between Pakistan and representatives of the Afghan Taliban regime in Doha. Minister of Defence Khwaja Asif led our delegation. Talks focused on immediate measures to end cross-border terrorism against Pakistan stemming from Afghanistan and the restoration of peace and stability along Pakistan-Afghanistan border.”
He pointed out that as a responsible state committed to regional peace and stability, Pakistan does not seek escalation but urges the Afghan Taliban authorities to honour their commitment to the international community and address Pakistan’s legitimate security concerns by taking verifiable action against terrorist entities, including the FAK/ TTP and FAH/ BLA.
Talks between the two neighbours will build upon negotiations from the initial round held in Qatar last week and which were mediated by Qatar and Turkiye in Doha last week.
This had led to a ceasefire agreement that remains in effect. The spokesperson pointed out that the Doha agreement was “a first step in ensuring regional peace and stability,” while emphasising that the Istanbul meeting aims to establish more concrete mechanisms to prevent terrorist activities originating from Afghan territory.
He recalled that the basic focus in the Doha talks was to stop the terrorist attacks from Afghan soil into Pakistan.
“And in order to do that, we should have a verifiable, empirical mechanism to ascertain that the Afghan Taliban Regime in Kabul is taking concrete actions to stop such attacks. As a result of those talks, the ceasefire came into effect which, by and large, still stands. As such, this is a marker of the positive achievement of the talks in Doha.
“We are taking part in the second round of talks in Istanbul with the same sincerity of purpose, with the same sincerity of intent with which we participated in Doha,”, he added.
He emphasised that Pakistan’s expectation is that Afghan soil should not be used for terrorist attacks against Pakistan.
“If you look at post-Doha, or in the run-up to Istanbul talks, you would see that ceasefire has, by and large, held itself. There has been no major full-scale terrorist attack, emanating from Afghan soil, in Pakistan in the last two-three days. So, in effect Doha talks and outcome were fruitful. We would like the trend to continue in Istanbul and post-Istanbul,” he remarked.
When asked about several statements coming from Kabul as the Afghan interim government interpreted the Doha talks differently the spokesperson responded, “We do not read too much into the nomenclature ascribed to the Doha Agreement by Taliban, whether it is an agreement or a truce or a treaty. The fact is that a substantive document was finalised is commendable. Frankly, whatever name Taliban give it, it does not matter much.”
To a query on transit trade which is frozen at the moment, the spokesperson said that transit trade with Afghanistan would remain suspended for the foreseeable future till the current security situation is evaluated.
“Afghan transit trade is not taking place and it will remain closed till the evaluation of the security situation”, he said. Border crossings at Landi Kotal and Chaman have remained closed since October 11. He said there had been continuous attacks on trading points at the border from the Afghan side that killed Pakistanis, adding that the lives of citizens were “more important than any commodity trade”.
He pointed out that Pakistan feels for the hardships faced by traders and businessmen.
“Ordinary people are also affected because of the commodity availability. But at the border points with Afghan Transit trade, armed attacks were carried out against Pakistan, killing Pakistanis. This pains us gravely. For us, the lives of Pakistanis are more important than any commodity traded. So, I think we have to have a very clear priority on ATT and our security. Pakistan lives and our security matters the most”, he said. To another query he said there was “certainly optimism in the air when the Taliban had taken over Afghanistan a few years back, but the use of Afghan soil by the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan and other armed groups to carry out attacks on Pakistan has changed the environment”.
Pakistan has expressed strong reservations about Afghanistan’s plans to build dams on rivers like the Kunar River, which flows into Pakistan, citing concerns about potential impacts on Pakistan’s water supply, irrigation and energy.
Of special concern is that could negatively affect water supply for irrigation and drinking water in its Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
What makes it more complex is that there is no formal treaty governing the use of river waters between Afghanistan and Pakistan, which leaves the situation open to potential dispute.
The issue was raised at the media briefing to which the spokesperson remarked, “Regarding dam on River Kunar, I have seen the tweet you referred. We are ascertaining the details. But generally trans-boundary rivers are governed by international law. In such matter, Pakistan is both an upper and lower riparian. So, we will follow this matter. . . The issue of dam on Kunar River is not new. You would recall, certainly our distinguished seniors who are here, would also recall that this issue probably has been there since the time of King Zahir Shah and Sardar Dawood, and it was definitely during the governments of President Karzai and Ghani. We monitor the new developments as they unfold”, he said.
In response to a query he said that he would “be very careful in saying the Taliban as ‘enemies’, or categorising them as such, particularly now that we are taking part in talks soon. We are in a very delicate process, so I will choose my words very carefully.”
The message from Pakistan to Taliban pointed out the spokesman to the regime in Kabul is clear. “Stop these attacks, control and apprehend these terrorists of the TTP and other armed groups, and our relations could be back on track. And this is not an unreasonable demand. We are not asking for moon. We are asking Taliban regime to uphold their own commitments. We are asking them to uphold the international law on these issues,” he said.
Earlier, according to Afghan media, the interim government in Afghanistan had ordered its Ministry of Energy and Water to begin construction of a dam on the Kunar River “as soon as possible,” in a move seen as potentially heightening tensions with Pakistan over shared water resources.
According to Taliban Energy and Water Minister Abdul Latif Mansoor, the Afghan Taliban leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, instructed the ministry not to wait for foreign companies and instead to sign contracts with domestic firms to launch the project. Mansoor quoted Akhundzada as saying that “Afghans have the right to manage their own waters.”
The Kunar River, one of Afghanistan’s five main rivers, originates in Chitral, Pakistan, flows for around 482 kilometres through Afghanistan’s Kunar province, and then joins the Kabul River before returning to Pakistan. Most of the Kabul River’s flow eventually reaches Pakistan, where provinces such as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa rely heavily on its waters.
Water sharing has long been a sensitive issue between the two neighbours, which have no formal water treaty and divide water based on customary practices.
Meanwhile, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) also announced that the bilateral trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan is temporarily halted due to security concerns at the border Customs stations. Before the suspension of bilateral trade took effect, Customs officials processed and cleared 363 import vehicles at Torkham, Ghulam Khan, Kharlachi and Angoor Adda crossings, falling under the jurisdiction of the Northern region of Appraisement.
At Torkham, 23 import vehicles are pending clearance as the importers did not file goods declarations. These vehicles, however, contain non- perishable goods like fabric, paint, peanuts, and pulses. It is expected that same would be cleared by the Customs as soon as goods declarations are filed by the concerned importers or customs clearing agents.
As regards exports, 255 vehicles are still lying inside the terminal at Torkham due to closure of border while around 200 vehicles are stranded along the Jamrud-Landi Kotal road. No import vehicle is pending clearance at the border stations of Ghulam Khan, Kharlachi and Angoor Adda.
At Chaman Border Customs Station, customs clearance operations have been suspended since October 15, 2025. As a result, 5 import and 23 export vehicles are currently awaiting processing. Notably, the owners of the 23 export consignments have declined to dray off consignments and have instead chosen to wait for cross-border trade to resume. Regarding transit consignments, approximately 495 vehicles are awaiting border crossing at Torkham and Chaman. Majority of these—412 vehicles—are stranded at Chaman, with the remaining 83 at Torkham. The Customs staff is available at the border stations to resume the clearance process as soon as borders open and situation returns to normalcy, the FBR stated. However, the sources said that the scanners were installed for clearance of goods which were earlier removed during the conflict at bordering areas between the two sides. Now after getting clearance from security apparatus the normalcy of bilateral trade will be resumed in the coming days.
Meanwhile, a superintendent of police (SP) among three policemen were martyred and one cop sustained injuries in an explosion in Hangu district on Friday, police officials said.
According to District Police Officer (DPO) Hangu, Khan Zeb Mohmand, unidentified miscreants had blown up the Ghulam Mina checkpost in the jurisdiction of Bilyamina Police Station. Following the explosion, he said, SP Operations, Asad Zubair Afridi, accompanied by a police contingent, was en route to the site of the incident when another improvised explosive device (IED) went off near their vehicle at Darband area. The powerful blast left SP Asad Zubair, Constable Kifayatullah, and Constable Atif martyred, while Constable Dawood sustained injuries.
Regional Police Officer (RPO) Kohat Range Abbas Majid Marwat, speaking to the media, said that security was on high alert due to Friday prayers, and multiple checkposts had been established under a search and strike operation. “Around 2pm, an IED exploded at an old police post located 100 meters from the main checkpoint. While police personnel remained safe, SP Asad Zubair and his team were heading toward the scene when the terrorists, lying in ambush, detonated another powerful IED,” he added.
RPO Marwat said that police and security forces had cordoned off the area and launched a search operation against the perpetrators, believed to be militants operating in the border areas of Orakzai and Hangu.
SP Operations Asad Zubair Afridi’s funeral prayer was scheduled to be held late Friday night at the New Police Lines in Kohat. He will be laid to rest on Saturday morning in his ancestral village, Naway Kallay, Kohat.
Asad Zubair was the cousin of PTI MNA and former federal interior minister Shehryar Afridi. His father, DSP Aurangzeb Afridi, also embraced martyrdom while serving in Bannu in 1981. SP Asad Zubair received his early education from St. Joseph’s School in Kohat and joined the police department on his father’s seat as an Assistant Sub-Inspector.
KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi and Chief Minister Sohail Afridi condemned the Hangu blasts.
The CM sought a report from the Inspector General of Police. He also convened a meeting of the Apex Committee to review the province’s law and order.
Meanwhile, the Hangu police said they killed two militants in a retaliatory operation following the twin blasts that martyred SP Operations Asad Zubair and two policemen.
President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also strongly condemned the attack at the police checkpost in Hangu carried out by the India-backed terrorists.
The president and prime minister, in separately issued statements, expressed deep grief over the martyrdom of police personnel, including SP Operations Asad Zubair, in the attack.
They prayed to Allah Almighty for the elevation of the martyrs’ ranks in paradise and expressed condolences to the bereaved families.
Meanwhile, security forces killed eight Khwarij in an Intelligence Based Operation (IBO) in Tank district on Friday. On reported presence of Khwarij belonging to Indian Proxy, Fitna al Khwarij, security forces conducted the IBO. During the operation, troops effectively engaged Khwarij locations, and after an intense fire exchange, eight Indian sponsored Khwarij were sent to hell, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) in a statement said.
Weapons and ammunition were also recovered from the killed Khwarij, who remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities against the Security Forces and Law Enforcement Agencies as well as killing of innocent civilians.
Sanitisation operation is being conducted to eliminate any other Indian sponsored Kharji found in the area as relentless Counter Terrorism campaign under vision “Azm e Istehkam” (as approved by Federal Apex Committee on National Action Plan) by Security Forces and Law Enforcement Agencies of Pakistan will continue at full pace to wipe out the menace of foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism from the country.
Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif paid tribute to the security forces for consigning to hell 8 terrorists during the IBP. She noted, “The whole nation stands united in our resolve to stamp out the menace of terrorism from our dear homeland.”
Meanwhile, unknown armed men attacked the crushing plant and camp of a private construction company in the Naal area of Khuzdar district in Baloshitan, setting several vehicles and pieces of machinery on fire before kidnapping 18 labourers at gunpoint.
According to Levies officials, the incident occurred late Thursday night, when over two dozen armed men stormed the company’s camp located around 80 kilometres from Khuzdar town. The attackers took the labourers hostage and later fled the scene, taking them to an unknown location.
“They set eight vehicles and other machinery ablaze before taking away the workers,” a senior Levies official posted in Naal confirmed. He added that security forces have launched a search operation in the area to trace the kidnapped workers. The abducted labourers were employed by D. Baloch Construction Company, which is engaged in building a road connecting Naal with Washuk and Basima. Confirming the incident, Zulfiqar Ahmed, the company’s manager, said that the abducted workers belong to Sindh province. “The armed men initially kidnapped 20 labourers from the camp, but two were released later while being taken to an unknown destination,” he said. Security personnel reached the site soon after receiving reports of the assault and have begun a comprehensive search operation to locate the armed group responsible. So far, no group has claimed responsibility for either kidnapping incident.