Pak-Afghan border crossing reopens

LANDIKOTAL: Hundreds of trucks resumed transportation on Tuesday after the Torkham border was reopened for vehicular traffic after 10 days of closure, officials said.

The crossing was closed on Jan 13 after Pakistani officials began asking for passports and visas from Afghan drivers under a new policy, prompting a reciprocal ban on Pakistani truckers by the Afghan authorities.

Pakistan has maintained that the requirement for legal travel documents was implemented the world over, Pakistan and Afghanistan being no exception.

Officials said more than 500 loaded trucks stuck and parked at the Pakistani side of the border embarked on their destinations as the critical access route for trade and transportation between the two countries was reopened at 10 am.

Customs officials said they allowed cargo vehicles to cross the border as Pakistan and Afghan officials met in Peshawar and resolved the issue. They said drivers had been exempted from passport and visa conditions till March 31. An official at Torkham said they relaxed the visa and passport conditions for the above period on the request of Afghan ambassador. He said both Pakistan and Afghan officials agreed to ban truckers without valid visas from April 1. “These 10 days were very hard which I spent with my loaded truck on the Afghan side of the border in harsh cold weather,” said Alam Jan Afghani whose truck was the first Afghan cargo vehicle that crossed the Torkham border and entered Pakistan after the border reopening. He thanked Pakistan and Afghanistan for settling the matter. The truckers and traders were happy when they heard about the resumption of cargo traffic via Torkham. Meanwhile, extra traffic police personnel were deployed at various points in Landikotal and Torkham to ensure that the traffic runs smoothly.