Operation Ghazab Lil Haq (Pakistan - Afghanistan War)

Pakistan, Afghanistan set up joint committee for talks at Torkham border​


13-member body to hold formal negotiations aimed at easing tensions and restoring trade

Abuzar Afridi
January 05, 2026


torkham gate pakistan photo rp


Torkham Gate Pakistan. PHOTO: RP

In a significant development aimed at reducing tensions and reviving trade activities, Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to establish a 13-member joint committee to hold formal negotiations at the Torkham border.

According to sources, the joint committee comprises six members from Pakistan and seven from Afghanistan. The Pakistani delegation will be led by Syed Jawad Hussain Kazmi, Adviser to the President of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), while the Afghan side will be headed by Mohammad Wali Amini.

Speaking to the media, Kazmi said the primary objective of the talks is the immediate reopening of Pak-Afghan trade routes, the removal of obstacles in border management, and ensuring the continuity of bilateral trade.

He added that a comprehensive and practical roadmap would be formulated to provide a lasting solution to the issues faced by traders and the general public.

Kazmi expressed optimism about positive outcomes from the talks, noting that the government of Pakistan has granted the committee full decision-making authority to ensure meaningful negotiations.
 

Pakistan, Afghanistan set up joint committee for talks at Torkham border​


13-member body to hold formal negotiations aimed at easing tensions and restoring trade

Abuzar Afridi
January 05, 2026


torkham gate pakistan photo rp


Torkham Gate Pakistan. PHOTO: RP

In a significant development aimed at reducing tensions and reviving trade activities, Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to establish a 13-member joint committee to hold formal negotiations at the Torkham border.

According to sources, the joint committee comprises six members from Pakistan and seven from Afghanistan. The Pakistani delegation will be led by Syed Jawad Hussain Kazmi, Adviser to the President of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), while the Afghan side will be headed by Mohammad Wali Amini.

Speaking to the media, Kazmi said the primary objective of the talks is the immediate reopening of Pak-Afghan trade routes, the removal of obstacles in border management, and ensuring the continuity of bilateral trade.

He added that a comprehensive and practical roadmap would be formulated to provide a lasting solution to the issues faced by traders and the general public.

Kazmi expressed optimism about positive outcomes from the talks, noting that the government of Pakistan has granted the committee full decision-making authority to ensure meaningful negotiations.
If Afghanistan’s current rulers choose not to cooperate, then there should be no trade. Let them feed their population through other means, as they themselves have claimed they can.

As part of any negotiations, the Afghan government must be compelled to establish a free-trade zone in the Wakhan Corridor. This zone should be administered by an independent authority funded and backed by Pakistan and China to ensure security, transparency, and uninterrupted regional trade. This is not optional and must be treated as a non-negotiable condition.

Equally non-negotiable is Afghanistan’s formal and unambiguous acceptance of the Durand Line as the international border. There can be no strategic ambiguity, historical revisionism, or selective recognition on this matter.

The choice must be made clear to the current rulers of Afghanistan: only a pro-Pakistan government that takes concrete, verifiable action against IS and the TTP will be allowed economic access and political legitimacy.

Pakistan should avoid prolonged military entanglement and limit itself to defensive border actions if required, while applying decisive pressure through trade and economic isolation. If cooperation is rejected, then it is the responsibility of Afghanistan’s leadership to explain the resulting hardship and starvation to their own population.

Peace and prosperity are available through cooperation. Isolation is a deliberate choice.

KV
 

Pakistan, Afghanistan set up joint committee for talks at Torkham border​


13-member body to hold formal negotiations aimed at easing tensions and restoring trade

Abuzar Afridi
January 05, 2026


torkham gate pakistan photo rp


Torkham Gate Pakistan. PHOTO: RP

In a significant development aimed at reducing tensions and reviving trade activities, Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to establish a 13-member joint committee to hold formal negotiations at the Torkham border.

According to sources, the joint committee comprises six members from Pakistan and seven from Afghanistan. The Pakistani delegation will be led by Syed Jawad Hussain Kazmi, Adviser to the President of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), while the Afghan side will be headed by Mohammad Wali Amini.

Speaking to the media, Kazmi said the primary objective of the talks is the immediate reopening of Pak-Afghan trade routes, the removal of obstacles in border management, and ensuring the continuity of bilateral trade.

He added that a comprehensive and practical roadmap would be formulated to provide a lasting solution to the issues faced by traders and the general public.

Kazmi expressed optimism about positive outcomes from the talks, noting that the government of Pakistan has granted the committee full decision-making authority to ensure meaningful negotiations.
least you can do keep the border close .
 
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𝗛𝗮𝗳𝗶𝘇 𝗚𝘂𝗹 𝗕𝗮𝗵𝗮𝗱𝘂𝗿 𝗜𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲𝘀 𝗥𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼 𝗠𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲, 𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗔𝘁𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗣𝗮𝗸𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻
 
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No open border until they hand us the head of the taliban chief.
 
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DG ISPR says Afghans involved in major terrorist incidents in Pakistan in 2025

News Desk
January 6, 2026

1767699230407.png

ISPR Director General (DG) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry speaks during a press conference on January 6. — DawnNewsTV

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry is currently addressing a press conference.

At the outset of the press conference, the military’s spokesperson said that the purpose of the briefing was to give a comprehensive overview of counter-terrorism measures taken in the past year.

This “is the only purpose of this press conference, and I would request that we remain focused on counterterrorism as terrorism is the biggest threat that is being faced by the state of Pakistan right now,” he added.

The DG ISPR said 2025 was a “landmark and consequential year in our fight against terrorism”, adding there were four reasons behind this conclusion.

Saying that the fight against terrorism was the entire nation’s and was being fought for more than two decades, the DG ISPR further stated that the past year witnessed “unprecedented intensity in counter-terrorism efforts”.
 
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In 2025, he continued, the state of Pakistan, as well as the people, gained “complete clarity on terrorism”.

“The state already had this clarity, which permeated slowly and gradually down[ward] that these terrorists are khawarij [and] they have no relation with Islam. They are Fitna-al-Hindustan and have no relation with Pakistan or [the people of] Balochistan,” he elaborated.

Fitna-al-Khawarij is a term that the state has designated for the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and it uses Fitna-al-Hindustan for Balochistan-based terrorist groups to highlight India’s alleged role in terrorism and destabilisation across Pakistan.

Lieutenant General Chaudhry further highlighted that in 2025, the world accepted and acknowledged Pakistan’s stance and narrative regarding terrorism, particularly about Afghanistan having become a “base of terrorism” operations.

Moreover, he said the last year also saw “how the National Action Plan (NAP) was reinvigorated and how it was being implemented”.

In this connection, he also mentioned that the vision for Azm-i-Istehkam — a counter-terrorism operation that was launched by the military in 2024 — had also been drawn from the revised NAP, and that all political parties and segments of society had reached a consensus that the implementation of the NAP was necessary to eliminate terrorism.

But “there are still deficiencies, and there is a lot of room for improvement” in the implementation of NAP, he acknowledged.
 
After outlining these four factors as the reasons behind the declaration of 2025 as a “landmark and consequential year” in terms of counter-terrorism, the DG ISPR went on to speak about them in detail.

1767699407948.png

.A screengrab from the presentation played at the DG ISPR’s press conference on January 6.

He began with sharing data, according to which, law enforcement agencies of Pakistan — including the army, police, Federal Constabulary and intelligence agencies — conducted a total of 75,175 intelligence-based operations (IBO) in 2025.

“Which comes down to 206 IBOs per day,” he said. Giving a breakdown, he said that of these operations, 14,658 were conducted in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 58,778 in Balochistan and 1,739 in the rest of Pakistan.

He added that 5,397 terror incidents took place in Pakistan during the last year, of which 3,811 were reported from KP (71pc), 1,557 from Balochistan (29pc) and 29 from other areas.

Lieutenant General Chaudhry also said that Afghans were involved in major terrorist incidents in Pakistan in 2025.

Moreover, 2,597 terrorists were killed in Pakistan in 2025, the DG ISPR said. Among them, 1,800 were killed in KP, 784 in Balochistan and 10 in other areas.

Last year, he continued, 1,235 law enforcement personnel and civilians were martyred in the fight against terrorism during 2025.

Sharing data about incidents of suicide bombing, he said a total of 27 had taken place in 2025. Of them, 16 took place in KP, 10 in Balochistan and one in Islamabad, at the judicial complex.

“Out of them, two [involved] female suicide bombers.”
 
In light of these facts and figures, he said, the question that came to mind was why the majority of terror incidents took place in KP.

“The primary reason for this is the politically conducive environnment that is being provided [to terrorists] there, and the political-terror nexus that is flourishing there,” he said.

The DG ISPR highlighted that data show that terrorism began rising from 2021. And a total of 193 terrorists were killed in comparison to 592 law enforcement personnel being martyred that year, he said, adding that it was a ratio of 1:3.

Moving to 2025, he pointed out that 2,597 terrorists were killed during last year and 1,235 law enforcement personnel were martyred. This would reduce to a ratio of 2:1, he added.

“But, more importantly, what happened in 2021 that terrorism rose?” he questioned, and went on to elaborate on the reason behind this development.

The DG ISPR explained that there was a change in Afghanistan in 2021 following the Doha Agreement.

“An armed group, the Afghan Taliban, sat down with the US and international partners and enter an agreement. Under the agreement, they made three commitments — that they will form an inclusive government in Afghanistan, use of Afghan soil for terrorism will not be allowed and women will be given rights [in Afghanistan],” the DG ISPR recalled.

But were the commitments fulfilled, the military spokesperson questioned.

“They were not. Is there a government there? There is no government there. They [just] call themselves interim Afghan government […] Is there an inclusive government there? No, there is not.
 
“Has terrorism been eradicated [from Afghanistan]? Contrarily, Afghanistan becomes a hub of terrorists and non-state actors. Terrorists of different creeds operate from there. So that is what started happening in 2021.”

Naming various terror outfits that the DG ISPR said were operating from Afghanistan, he said it had become a “centre point where terrorists of all kinds are being nurtured”.

He said recently, around 2,500 terrorists, who were neither Afghans nor Pakistanis, had reached Afghanistan from Syria.

The military spokesperson also said that the Afghan Taliban, “which is now the mother organisation” had started organising the TTP as per its organisational structure. They also trained and gave direction to the terror outfit, the DG ISPR.

Moreover, Afghan Taliban built a “fake” narrative, boasting that they forced the US and international coalition forces to flee Afghanistan.

“On the basis of that, they start further polluting the minds of youngsters, the youth, religious-minded people. They present themselves as the flag-bearers of Islam and increase their recruitment.

“But if you analyse the matter, you will realise that they did not make them [coalition forces and the US] flee. There were other reasons for it.”

The DG ISPR also spoke about war economy in this regard. He referred to a recent report by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, which he said mentioned that around $144 billion were pumped into the reconstruction of Afghanistan.

“When the [supply of] that money stopped, in order to continue to run the war economy, they [Afghan Taliban] spread the war in the form of terrorism in the entire region. And they find new patrons, new financial sponsors. And the biggest patron they find for terrorism in Pakistan is India.”
 
The DG ISPR said India was using the Afghan Taliban as proxies and was providing them with financial and other assistance.

“So the base of operations is being provided in Afghanistan by Afghan Taliban and India’s money and patronage [is available].”

He added that Afghan Taliban were taking the assistance of sponsors from elsewhere too — wherever they were able to find them — to run the war economy.

The military spokesperson further said that modern US equipment worth $7.2bn was left behind in Afghanistan. It included night-vision devices, long-range sniper rifles, bulletproof jackets, protection equipment, M-4 and M-16 — “the best of weapons and ammunition”.

This equipment was “available to the Afghan Taliban, in the black market, to all these terrorist organisations”.

Moreover, the political party in power in Pakistan in 2021 began “internally facilitating [terrorists]” and decided to hold talks with them while a “great game was being played there (Afghanistan)“.

This seemingly was a reference to talks held between the then-Pakistan government and the TTP.

The DG ISPR went on to say that “once you give them (terrorists) so much space and so much wherewithal, you see a [rise] in terror incidents”.

“Come 2023, that state starts standing against them.”
 
He referred to a speech by the army chief following a blast in a mosque in Police Lines in Peshawar in 2023, adding that on that occasion, the army chief gave clarity on terrorism. “Entire Pakistan has that clarity now”.

Further elaborating on this “clarity”, he used harsh language, stating that terrorists had no religious association, they had to be eliminated and action had to be taken against them.

“But it takes time. Because if you have to fight them, you have to equip yourself, you have to train yourself, you have to adopt the right technology, you have to build that narrative, you have to take along the nation.

“You saw this last year, which I said was a consequential and landmark year, when the tide started turning.”

The military’s spokesperson acknowledged that questions were also raised on the large number of terror incidents — 5,397 in 2025.

“Yes, this is a big number. Why? Because we are engaging them everywhere. We are doing 75,000 IBOs, 206 every day, and we are taking them on.

“By we, I mean myself, you and everyone in Pakistan. We have absolute clarity that we have to win this fight, not by appeasement, but by force and strength. Because there are a few things in life fighting for which is not just justified but also necessary, and there is no option other than that.”

He said when terrorism had reared its head in other countries, it had destroyed states. “But your state, your law enforcement agencies and your army are fighting on a daily basis.”

Referring to a chart, he said it could be deduced from the data that after Pakistan defeated India during a four-day conflict in May 2025, a surge was seen in terrorism. After its defeat, “Indians immediately put in efforts into non-state actors”.
 

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