Police officials said troops have reached the Zazi Maidan district in Khost province after clashes broke out on Sunday between local residents and Pakistani troops across the Durand Line.
“Army, Police and NDS (National Directorate of Security) forces have reached Zazi Maidan district and they will respond to the Pakistan military attacks,” said Gul Agha Rohani 303 Spinghar Police Corps’ acting commander.
Clashes between Khost residents and Pakistani military personnel broke out in Zazi Maidan district along the Durand Line early Sunday morning.
According to Khost’s provincial acting police chief, Abdul Hanan, the clash broke out close to the Pakistan border.
The 203rd Thunder Corps commander, General Shaur Gul, said the skirmish started when Pakistani soldiers started shooting at a check post close to Jandighar area in Zazi Maidan district.
According to him, three Pakistani soldiers were killed, and three others arrested.
“At eight o’clock Pakistani military started attacking our local people and security forces fired back, killing three Pakistani soldiers. Three others were arrested, and our two Afghan civilians were killed, and two others were wounded,” Gul said.
The Jandighar check post is located on the top of a hill. Officials have said the Pakistani military has tried on numerous occasions to capture the check post. However, on Sunday when they again tried to take control, local residents retaliated.
Local officials said late Sunday afternoon the situation had not yet ended and sporadic shooting could still be heard.
Video footage received by TOLOnews shows a Pakistani army officer named Brigadier Akhtar ask an Afghan army officer to handover at least three Pakistani nationals. However, in the video, the Pakistani officer did not specify whether these nationals were dead or alive.
“Three of our people are with you and what will be their fate,” the Pakistani army officer asks the Afghan army officer.
Meanwhile, Afghan border forces in Paktia province said on Sunday afternoon that they had prevented Pakistani forces from building installations in their area along the Durand Line.
“As you are aware Pakistani forces wanted to build installations in the zero point along Durand Line in Dand Patan district, but we have stopped them; the Taliban are also cooperating with the Pakistani military,” said Osman Janbaz, a border commander.
“We are ready to defend our land at the cost of our lives,” said another border soldier Ehsan.
This comes after a barrage of missiles were fired by Pakistan into Kunar province last week.
Ghani Samim, Kunar governor’s spokesman, said in a week nearly 1,500 missiles had been fired on Kunar province.
Samim said after a break of two days, shelling started up again on Monday night. Almost 400 missiles landed in Kunar province overnight, he said.
In February last year, the Ministry of Defense (MoD) warned that Pakistan’s missile attacks on the eastern regions of the country would have serious consequences, suggesting that a diplomatic solution to the issue between the two neighbors was needed.
However, Pakistani officials in the past have claimed that they targeted only terrorist groups by firing off the missiles but residents said the missiles hit their houses and the surrounding forests.