Islamabad/Kabul, 15 October 2025: Pakistan and Afghanistan on Wednesday announced a temporary 48-hour ceasefire along their volatile border, following an airstrike and ground fighting that killed more than a dozen civilians and escalated tensions between the two neighbours. The clashes marked the deadliest confrontation between the countries since the Taliban came to power in Kabul in 2021.
A statement from Pakistan’s foreign ministry said the ceasefire, effective from 1300 GMT on Wednesday, was agreed upon at the request of the Afghan Taliban government. “During this period, both sides will make sincere efforts, through constructive dialogue, to find a positive solution to this complex yet resolvable issue,” the statement said.
Afghan Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said Kabul ordered all forces to observe the truce provided the other side does not initiate aggression. He noted the agreement followed a “request and insistence of the Pakistani side.”
The recent flare-up stems from Islamabad’s demand that the Afghan Taliban tackle militants allegedly using Afghan territory to attack Pakistan. The Taliban denies these claims, accusing Pakistan of spreading misinformation, provoking border tensions, and sheltering ISIS-linked militants to undermine Afghanistan’s stability and sovereignty. Pakistan’s military rejects these allegations, pointing instead to attacks in Pakistan by ISIS-K, the regional affiliate of the Islamic State group.
