Pakistan`s role most important in peace process: Chief Executive Afghanistan

KABUL: Afghanistan Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah said on Monday that no state can play more role than Pakistan in the Afghan peace process.

Speaking to Pakistani journalists in Kabul, he said that Afghanistan does not want to destabilise Pakistan – neither it has potential to do it, further adding that whoever harms Pakistan would harm Afghanistan.

“We consider Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan a terrorist organisation – whoever harms Pakistan, harms Afghanistan.”

Abdullah said that he has not issued any directives against Islamabad.

Meanwhile, Pakistani and Afghan authorities mooted over the control of areas — Killi Luqman and Killi Jahangir — affected during firing and shelling by Afghan forces on Friday, as yet another flag meeting between the officials of the two countries ended in a stalemate.

During the second meeting after the firing incident at the border, Afghan authorities were of the view that Killi Luqman and Killi Jahangir fell under their jurisdiction, sources said. But Pakistani authorities said the areas were situated within the Pakistani territory which could be verified from Google maps.

Earlier, neither Frontier Corps nor Afghan forces were present in the villages situated near the border. However, electricity and infrastructural facilities present in the areas belonged to Pakistan, according to sources.

At least 11 people were martyred and 46 injured early Friday when Afghan border forces opened fire on Frontier Corps Balochistan soldiers deployed for security of census team near the Chaman border.

Bab-e-Dosti remains closed

The Bab-e-Dosti gate situated on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border at Chaman remained closed on the third day following the firing incident.

Pakistan Army and FC personnel were deployed at the border to monitor the situation and also stop people from crossing the border. Even trucks carrying goods are not being allowed to cross the border.

The Pakistan military's media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations, had stated the Afghan Border Police have been creating hurdles since April 30 in the census process in the divided villages of Killi Luqman and Killi Jahangir in Chaman, on the Pakistani side of the border.

"This was done despite the fact that Afghan authorities had been informed well in advance and coordination was carried out through diplomatic and military channels for the census process," the ISPR statement read.

Chaman shares a border with the Afghan province of Kandahar and is home to a busy international border crossing between the two countries.