LANDIKOTAL: Torkham border closed after an exchange of heavy firing over the hills top bunker construction by Afghan security forces on Monday, sources said.
The sources said that Afghan border forces were constructing a bunker near the border. They said a numbers of times Pakistani border forces had complained over the disputed bunker.
” On Monday evening when Pakistani border authorities asked the Afghan officials to stop the construction work on the bunker near the international botder, the Afghan side fired heavey shells over the post near Torkham border” said an official. He said a mortar shell also landed in Mukhtarkhel village locality in hills however no damage was found.
Meanwhile, Torkham border was closed for all kind of movement from and to Afghanistan. Afghan side of the Torkham was also vacated by Afghan border authorities to avoid human losses. Residents in Bacha Mina village adjacent to Torkham border also started vacating their homes and moving towards Landikotal, eyewitnesses said.
Hundreds of loaded and empty trucks on both sides of the Torkham stranded due to the fresh conflict causing billions of rupees losses to traders and transporters.
Landikotal station house officer Amjad Khan Afridi when contacted he said firing between the two countries stopped and so far no casualty was reported.
