KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – China has expressed hope that the Taliban and Pakistan will hold direct talks as soon as possible to resolve rising tensions between the two sides.
Speaking at a press briefing on Monday (March 16), Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said Beijing hopes both sides will exercise restraint and pursue dialogue to end the ongoing conflict.
“China hopes Afghanistan and Pakistan will remain calm and exercise restraint, engage face to face ASAP, achieve a ceasefire at the earliest opportunity, and resolve differences and disputes through dialogue. China will continue to facilitate reconciliation and ease tensions,” Lin said.
He added that China has been actively trying to mediate between the two sides over the past week. According to Lin, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has held talks with the foreign ministers of both the Taliban administration and Pakistan. China’s special envoy has also travelled to Kabul and Islamabad, while Chinese embassies have remained in close contact with both parties.
Lin said China will continue its efforts to help facilitate reconciliation and reduce tensions between the Taliban and Pakistan.
The clashes between the Taliban and Pakistan have now continued for more than two weeks.
During this period, Pakistan has carried out air and rocket strikes in several Afghan provinces. In response, the Taliban have launched drones toward Pakistan and attacked Pakistani border posts.
Earlier, China had also described the fighting between the two sides as concerning and called for the tensions to be resolved through dialogue.
Meanwhile, the Taliban say Pakistani attacks in the past 24 hours have caused civilian casualties.
Hamdullah Fitrat, deputy spokesperson for the Taliban, said four civilians, including two children, were killed and nine others wounded in recent Pakistani strikes.
Speaking on Monday, he said the casualties occurred during Pakistani attacks on the provinces of Nuristan, Khost, Kunar and Paktika.
Fitrat added that several civilian homes were also destroyed in the strikes. He accused Pakistan of deliberately targeting civilian houses with rocket and artillery fire in those provinces.
In Khost, artillery and mortar attacks by the Pakistani military regime have killed two people and injured eight others, including women and children.
At around 12:00 a.m. last night, mortar shells were fired by the militias of the Pakistani military regime on Nari village in Gurbuz district of Khost province. As a result, one woman was killed, while another woman and a young girl were injured.
Similarly, the Pakistani military regime carried out mortar and artillery attacks on several villages in Zazi Maidan district. As a result of these attacks, a resident of Palwotsai village was killed, and six other people were injured in the Atakhel area and near the central clinic.
In addition, in Kotkai area of Alishero–Terezai district, two local residents were injured after mortar and artillery shells fired by the Pakistani military regime struck civilian homes.
Several houses were also damaged as a result of these attacks.
The fighting between the Taliban and Pakistan has intensified in recent days.
Pakistani air and rocket strikes have increased across various parts of Afghanistan, with several locations in Kabul, the capital, as well as Kandahar and other provinces reportedly coming under bombardment.
The Taliban have continued their response with drone attacks against Pakistan and assaults on Pakistani border posts.
Pakistan has experienced a marked increase in militant attacks, particularly in the border provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. Security forces, checkpoints, and civilians remain frequent targets of groups, including the TTP and the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA). Islamabad accuses the Afghan Taliban of supporting and providing safe havens to TTP and other militant groups, a claim the Taliban denies.
