• Crossing opened for trucks, critical patients; pedestrian crossings to resume this week
• Pakistan, Afghan jirga members stress need to keep crossing open permanently
• Local traders believe Pakistan lost $40.5m in possible profits due to extended closure
KHYBER: After ten days of hectic shuttle diplomacy spearheaded by tribal elders from both sides, the Torkham border reopened on Wednesday for trade and medical emergencies following an almost month-long closure due to a border dispute between Islamabad and Kabul.
The delegates from both sides met at zero point in the afternoon for a brief reopening ceremony, lasting about half an hour.
The meeting was followed by the stranded vehicles crossing over to both sides of the border.
Ambulances were also parked close to the crossing at the time of the opening ceremony in order to shift the seriously ill Afghan patients to Pakistan, while traffic police hastened to regulate the heavy traffic as frustrated transporters tried to overtake each other in their bids to cross the border before sunset.
Sources in the Pakistani delegation told Dawn that the Afghan representatives first came to the Pakistani side of the border, and later the Pakistani side also stepped on Afghan soil for a brief stay as a gesture of goodwill.
Younas Momand of the Afghan Chamber of Commerce and Industries and Shah Khalid Shinwari, tehsil chairman of Landi Kotal from the Pakistan side, made brief speeches in which they emphasised the need for keeping the border permanently open and resolving all border issues through consultations.
While thanking the security officials and the jirga members for their untiring efforts to resolve the issue, they also called for abiding by all the written and verbal agreements and commitments made by the officials and delegates during the last ten days while urging both sides to desist from any negative propaganda.
The jirga members then offered collective prayers and hugged each other while also sharing bouquets. Subsequently, one vehicle loaded with coal from Afghanistan entered Pakistan, while another loaded with cement crossed over into Afghanistan.
The border reopening ceremony was preceded by a Wednesday morning meeting between border security officials at Torkham, during which they agreed to abstain from new constructions till the issue is permanently resolved.
It was agreed on Wednesday morning that initially the border would be reopened for vehicular traffic and most serious patients, while regular pedestrian movement would be restored in a couple of days.
It was also learnt through reliable sources that backdoor diplomatic channels between Peshawar and Jalalabad (capital of Nangarhar) were instrumental in the opening of the border, besides two rounds of talks between the jirga members. The first session was held at Torkham on March 7.
On Tuesday night, the authorities sent instructions to the customs, immigration and National Logistic Cell officials to operationalise their systems in anticipation of the border reopening.
The Torkham border crossing, considered one of the main and busiest trade routes between Pakistan and Afghanistan, was abruptly closed on the night of Feb 20 over differences between the border security forces regarding the construction of a security check post by Afghans near the zero point.
The tensions boiled over, and both sides engaged in a gun battle for three days, starting March 3. A 57-member jirga was then constituted by Pakistan on March 7 when senior members of the Afghan Chamber of Commerce and Industries expressed their desire to settle the issue through negotiations.
