Afghan police say Pakistani fire killed two children

Afghan police said Thursday that gunfire from Pakistani border forces killed two children and wounded two other civilians in eastern Afghanistan.

Syed Tayyeb Hammad, spokesman for the Nangarhar police command, said the incident happened Wednesday near the Torkham border crossing in Nangarhar province.

Two Pakistani officials stationed near Torkham, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP there had been no firing in the area for the past three days.

Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have been tense since the Taliban authorities took power in 2021. Islamabad accuses Afghanistan of allowing militants responsible for attacks in Pakistan to operate from Afghan territory. Afghanistan's Taliban authorities deny the allegation.

Deadly border clashes in October last year led to a near-total closure of the border. Clashes later subsided after mediation, but the conflict intensified again in February, when Pakistan declared “an open war” on its neighbour.

Hundreds of civilians have been killed in fighting between the two countries since October last year, according to figures from the UN mission in Afghanistan.