Geopolitical factors unfortunately make this proposal a pipedream. One of the greatest consequences of the Third Gulf War is the de facto suspension of the North-South Transport Corridor (NSTC). This megaproject connects Russia and India via Iran (through branch corridors across Azerbaijan, the Caspian, and Turkmenistan-Kazakhstan) as well as India with Afghanistan and Central Asia via Iran too. This kaleidoscope […]

Letting this unilateral escort mission continue unimpeded could lead to Pakistan forming the core of a multilateral mission for neutralizing Iran’s ace of closing the Strait of Hormuz, but stopping it risks expanding the war, so it’s unclear exactly what the IRGC will decide to do since neither option is ideal. Pakistan announced the launch of Operation Muhafiz-ul-Bahr (“Protector of […]

The Taliban’s foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi has said their administration is facing an “imposed war” with Pakistan as clashes between the two sides continue. Addressing an iftar meeting with foreign diplomats at the Foreign Ministry in Kabul, Muttaqi blamed Pakistan for violating the ceasefire the two sides agreed on last year in Doha. “We are facing an imposed war,” […]

The Taliban’s defense ministry has claimed that 109 Pakistani soldiers were killed and 148 others were wounded in a series of overnight attacks along the border, as fighting between the two sides entered its ninth day. Enayatullah Khwarazmi, spokesman for the Taliban’s Defense Ministry, said Taliban forces carried out what he described as “offensive attacks” in 28 locations across six […]

A Taliban official in eastern Afghanistan said Pakistani forces shelled residential areas in Khost province overnight, as border fighting between the two sides entered its tenth day. Mustaghfar Gurbaz, spokesman for the Taliban governor in Khost, said Pakistani border troops fired toward the Brekhilo village in Gurez district, striking what he described as civilian homes. He did not provide details […]

Taliban and Pakistani border troops clashed again Saturday morning along the frontier in Paktika province, as fighting between the two sides entered its tenth day, according to local Taliban officials. Abdul Qadoos Makhdum, the Taliban district chief in Terwa district, said Taliban forces had launched attacks on five Pakistani border outposts and that the fighting was still continuing. He did […]

The 201 Khalid bin Walid Corps has reported that on Thursday night, Afghan forces killed eight Pakistani soldiers during operations along the Durand Line in Kunar province. Spokesperson Wahidullah Mohammadi stated that in Monawara district, three soldiers were killed by precision laser strikes, while another soldier was killed in Sarkani district by a gun. Two additional soldiers were killed in […]

Pakistani forces fired “dozens” of artillery rounds into eastern Afghanistan overnight, Taliban local officials said on Wednesday, as cross-border fighting between the two sides entered its seventh day. In Kunar province, Pakistani border forces fired at least 101 artillery shells into several districts, according to Taliban officials. They said 82 rounds struck Sarkano district, 15 hit Dangam district and four […]

Pakistani airstrikes have targeted three Taliban military sites in Kandahar province in southern Afghanistan, according to sources familiar with the attacks, as cross-border fighting between Pakistan and the Taliban entered its seventh day. Sources told Amu TV that the strikes hit the Taliban’s air brigade, the third battalion of the Taliban border police, and the 205 Al-Badr Corps, a major […]

At least 28 Taliban forces have been killed and 42 wounded since border clashes with Pakistan began on Feb. 26, the Taliban defense ministry spokesman said on Tuesday. Enayat Khwarazmi told a news conference that the figures covered the six days of fighting along the frontier. Pakistan has put the Taliban death toll at more than 350, a claim that […]