Pakistan-Afghanistan truce for 'Eid' - Decoding the 'peace' pact

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Pakistan has announced a "temporary pause" in the conflict with Afghanistan to mark the end of Ramadan, following a deadly strike in Kabul that has heightened tensions between the two countries. The ceasefire, set to run from Thursday to Monday for Eid al-Fitr, was requested by "brotherly Islamic countries" including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey, Pakistan’s information minister Attaullah Tarar said.

"Pakistan offers this gesture in good faith and in keeping with the Islamic norms," he wrote on X. However, he warned that operations would resume "with renewed intensity" in the event of any cross-border or drone attack, or any terrorist incident inside Pakistan.

There was no immediate response from the Taliban authorities.

The announcement comes after Pakistani jets struck a drug rehabilitation centre in the Afghan capital on Monday night, in what is described as the deadliest incident so far in the escalating conflict.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZNbiOHinao

Taliban officials said around 400 people were killed and more than 200 wounded, although Islamabad has rejected claims the strike deliberately targeted civilians.

At a mass funeral on a hillside above Kabul, dozens of coffins were carried to a grave site by volunteers from the Afghan Red Crescent Society. Afghanistan’s interior minister Sirajuddin Haqqani described the victims as innocent and vowed retaliation.

"We will take revenge," he said, adding: "We are not weak and helpless. You will see the consequences of your crimes."

At the same time, he suggested diplomacy remained the preferred path. "We do not want war but the situation has come to this," he said.

The exact number of casualties remains unclear, with independent verification difficult in both countries. Journalists at the scene reported seeing at least 95 bodies recovered from the rubble in the immediate aftermath of the strike.

Jacopo Caridi of the Norwegian Refugee Council said aid workers had witnessed "hundreds of killed and wounded". Describing the aftermath, he said recovery efforts had been hampered by the scale of destruction.

"I saw a finger in one place, a foot in another place, a hand in one location. It was really horrific," he said. Afghanistan’s health ministry said 50 coffins were brought to the Kabul burial site on Wednesday, while identification of victims was still ongoing.

Pakistan has accused Afghanistan of harbouring militants responsible for cross-border attacks, an allegation Kabul denies. The conflict has drawn international concern, with the United Nations reporting that at least 76 Afghan civilians had been killed in fighting since late February, even before the latest strike, and that more than 115,000 families had been displaced.

China has sent a special envoy and said it would play a "constructive role" in de-escalation, while Russia has indicated it would be willing to help broker talks if both sides request it. 

Source: Pakistan-Afghanistan truce for 'Eid' - Decoding the 'peace' pact

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