PESHAWAR: Cross-border trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan was back to normal Wednesday, officials in both countries said, after Islamabad suspended a new visa rule.
Commercial traffic ground to a halt Tuesday when Pakistan began requiring the crew of commercial vehicles to have passports and visas to enter, and Afghanistan responded by refusing to allow any trucks to pass.
“Yesterday, when Pakistan enforced its new rules, the Afghan side responded by suspending trade in protest,” a Pakistan customs official told AFP Wednesday.
“Last night, officials from the Ministry of Commerce held a meeting with Afghan officials, reaching an agreement to grant another two-week extension for Afghan drivers.”
The official said Pakistan had already twice deferred implementing the new rule.
The media office of the governor of Nangarhar province in Afghanistan confirmed that cross-border trade had resumed.
“Afghan and Pakistani officials held talks... and it was assured that this problem will be solved permanently,” it said in a post on X.
Long-fraught relations between Kabul and Islamabad have worsened since October, when Pakistan announced plans to deport hundreds of thousands of Afghan migrants it said were in the country illegally.
So far about 340,000 Afghans have been deported or returned voluntarily.
Pakistan has said only Afghans with passports and visas will be allowed to enter the country, ending a decades-old practice of allowing people to cross with only their national identity cards.
Landlocked Afghanistan is heavily dependent on its neighbor for imports — both locally made goods and foreign items sourced through Pakistan’s Karachi port.
But Pakistan, in the grip of a massive economic crisis, says it loses hundreds of millions of dollars each year allowing Afghan-bound goods to enter the country duty-free.
Some items never make it across the border, while others are smuggled back into Pakistan and sold illegally.
Islamabad says the mass deportation of illegal migrants is necessary to protect its “welfare and security” after a sharp rise in attacks that the government blames on militants operating from Afghanistan.
Afghanistan’s Taliban government insists it does not allow foreign militants to use its soil, and says Pakistan’s security issues are a domestic affair.
Afghan border trade resumes at Torkham after Pakistan suspends new visa rule
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Afghan border trade resumes at Torkham after Pakistan suspends new visa rule
- Pakistan said only Afghans with proper travel documents, instead of just national ID cards, could enter the country
- The trade resumed after officials from both countries met, granting two-week extension to Afghan drivers to sort documents
Imran Khan's sons fear for his health, seek visas to visit him in Pakistan
- Pakistani authorities say medical procedures are under way and reject opposition claims of neglect
- Khan's sons say he should be moved to a proper medical facility and have access to private doctors
LONDON: Imran Khan's sons say they fear for their father's deteriorating health in a Pakistani jail and are seeking permission to visit the former prime minister, urging authorities to grant access after more than two years apart.
Khan's lawyer told Pakistan's Supreme Court last week that the ex-cricketer had lost significant vision in his right eye while in custody. A medical board said on Monday the swelling had reduced after treatment and his vision had improved.
Speaking to Reuters in London, where they are based, Khan's sons, Kasim and Sulaiman, 26 and 29, said they were uncertain about the medical report. They spoke to their father on Thursday for the first time since September.
They said their father usually avoids discussing his health, but during the call he expressed frustration, saying he had been denied treatment for his eye for a few months.
"It's hard not to feel low at times because we've been away from him so long," Kasim said of his father, whom he and his brother call 'Abba', adding that he should be moved to a proper medical facility and have access to his private doctors.
Authorities say medical procedures are under way and reject opposition claims of neglect. The Supreme Court has sought details of his treatment.
JAILED SINCE AUGUST 2023
Khan, 73, has been jailed since August 2023 after convictions he and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party call politically motivated.
Since his 2022 ouster in a no-confidence vote, he has faced multiple cases, including over state gifts and an unlawful marriage. Some convictions have been suspended or overturned, with appeals pending. He denies wrongdoing.
Kasim and Sulaiman were raised in Britain after Khan's divorce from their mother, British socialite and filmmaker Jemima Goldsmith. They have not seen their father since November 2022 after he survived an assassination attempt. They said they applied for visas last month but have yet to receive a response.
"Maybe the establishment is worried that if we go and see him it would create more noise, and just more attention to his situation," Sulaiman said, when asked why there could be a delay.
The Pakistani embassy in London and Pakistan's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Kasim said their immediate concern was his health, but there were other pressing issues, including "his freedom, abiding by correct human rights processes and also the rule of law and just ensuring that he's allowed a proper, fair trial".
Broadcast outlets have been restricted from airing Khan's name and speeches or even showing his image. Only a single court photograph has been publicly available since his imprisonment.
PTI swept to power in 2018 and retains a large support base across key provinces.
For four days, PTI supporters have blocked major highways linking Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to Punjab, stranding thousands of vehicles and affecting fuel and food supplies in some areas.
Asked if they had a message for Khan's supporters, Kasim asked them to "keep faith and keep fighting", adding: "It's the same kind of message we're trying to hold on to."
