Pakistani-Afghan border gate reopened after over a week

KARACHI, Pakistan

Pakistan on Monday reopened a key border crossing with neighboring Afghanistan for trade and pedestrian movement after a week-long closure, officials said.

The southwestern Chaman border – one of the two main crossings between the two neighbors – was sealed on Nov. 13 following the killing of a Pakistani border troop by an armed Afghan.

The decision to reopen the border, also known as Friendship Gate, was taken after a series of "flag meetings" between the officials of the two border forces, Chaman Deputy Commissioner Abdul Hameed Zehri told reporters.

The Afghan side, according to him, has assured that they would hand over the suspect to Pakistani authorities.

Apart from trade activities, thousands of people, mainly Afghans, daily cross into the two bordering areas for medical and labor purposes.

Clashes between the two border troops, mainly at the Chaman border, have long been taking place, and there is no lull even after the re-capture of Afghanistan by the Taliban in August last year.

Pakistan and landlocked Afghanistan share 18 crossing points, with the busiest ones being the northwestern Torkham and Chaman border posts.

The two neighbors share a porous border of almost 2,670 kilometers (1,640 miles).