Afghanistan Times
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KABUL: Adding to the continued violation of territory, Pakistan has built checkpoints inside the Afghan territory in eastern Paktia province, local officials said Sunday.
Ayoub Gharwal, the Provincial Council’s deputy head, said that Pakistani military had built check-posts in Gewe, Spina Shega and Oda Sar areas where Afghan forces had their own checkpoints.
He regretted that this happened as there were not enough Afghan personnel to guard the Durand Line.
In 2017, Pakistan began building a fence along the disputed 2,500 km Durand Line – a hypothetical line which is recognized as border by Pakistan, but not Afghanistan.
“It is astonishing to see the government is silent over Pakistan’ fencing. People have no idea what’s going on? Is there asecret deal that doesn’t allow preventing it?” Syed Jamaludin, a resident of Paktia, stated.
Governor Shamim Khan Katawzai confirmed that Pakistani military was building two checkpoints in Dand-i-Patan area of the province. However, he claimed that Afghan forces resisted and pushed them back.
This comes despite Afghanistan raised its concern over Pakistan’s continued violation of territory and shelling of the country’s eastern provinces through seeking intervention of the UN Security Council.
“These violations were in the form of shelling of districts in eastern parts of Afghanistan; construction of military posts and barriers on Afghan territory; and violation of Afghan air space by Pakistani military aircraft,” Afghanistan’s permanent representative to the UN, Adela Raz, wrote in the letter to the UNSC last week.
The letter was written against the backdrop of the incident on August 19 and 20, wherein Pakistani military forces fired 200 rockets into Shultan district of Kunar province, followed by scores of more incursions that resulted in the killing of three children.
