At least six Pakistani nationals and a Taliban member were killed in a cross-border shelling and gunfire, Pakistan’s special envoy to Afghanistan, Mohammad Sadiq, said on Sunday evening.
Taliban said one of their members was killed, and 10 more were wounded.
A Taliban spokesman in Kandahar said that three civilians were wounded in the clash.
Sadiq said that Pakistan condemns the incident that took place on Sunday afternoon in which “six Pakistani nationals were killed and 17 were wounded” after the Taliban “resorted to unprovoked and indiscriminate firing onto the civilian population in Chaman.”
“Such unfortunate incidents are not in keeping with the brotherly ties between the two countries,” Sadiq said, adding that Taliban authorities have been informed that the recurrence of such incidents must be avoided and strictest possible action must be taken against those responsible.
“It remains the responsibility of both sides to protect civilians along the border. The concerned authorities of both countries remain in contact to ensure that there is no further escalation of the situation and recurrence of such incidents is avoided,” he added.
This comes after the Spin Boldak-Chaman crossing was closed for week in November after a Pakistani Frontier Force member was shot dead and two others were wounded by a Taliban border guard.
The shooting on Nov. 13 resulted in the closure of the border, which is also known as Friendship Gate, causing heavy losses to traders and stranding thousands of people on both sides.
Taliban expressed regret over the incident vowing to conduct a “thorough probe” into the incident but did not confirm the involvement of its members in the incident.
