The closure of the Torkham border crossing, a crucial link between Afghanistan and Pakistan, has entered its sixth day, disrupting trade and leaving thousands stranded in the harsh winter. This impasse started on February 21 when Pakistan shut the crossing due to an ongoing dispute over Afghanistan’s construction of a border post.
More than 5,000 trucks carrying goods, including essential fruits and vegetables, have been immobilized on both sides of the border, Ziaul Haq Sarhadi from the Pakistan-Afghanistan Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry reports. Torkham plays a critical role as a trade corridor to Central Asia, and Sarhadi urges both nations to resolve their differences swiftly to resume trade and free movement of people.
At the border, truck driver Najeeb Ullah shares his frustration, highlighting his forced stay inside his vehicle to guard it, while appealing for mercy from both governments. Another driver, Mustafa Khan, recounts his prolonged wait to return home to Peshawar after delivering cement to Jalalabad.
Afghan traveler Farhad Nusrat, stuck with his family at the crossing, calls on Pakistani authorities to reopen the passage, as they endure nights exposed to the elements. Many Pakistanis are stranded on the Afghan side, awaiting resolution.
Afghan border official Abdul Jabbar Hikmat comments on the closure, pointing out a pattern of border shutdowns only when Afghanistan undertakes construction, whereas Pakistan’s similar actions proceed without hindrance. Disputes at Torkham often flare due to disagreements over new posts along the Durand Line, a boundary Afghanistan has never officially accepted. Pakistan has been reinforcing the line with a nearly complete border fence.
The Torkham area, bordering Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, is not only strategic but also unstable, with frequent attacks by Pakistani Taliban militants, or TTP. Though separate from the Afghan Taliban, the TTP shares ideological ties and has been emboldened by the latter’s rise to power in 2021, further straining Pakistan-Afghanistan relations.
