Pakistan, Afghanistan agree on Eid ceasefire, pause hostilities

Pakistan and Afghanistan on Wednesday night announced a temporary pause in hostilities ahead of Eid Al Fitr, in what appears to be a rare de-escalation following days of heightened cross-border tensions.

In a statement shared on social media, Information Minister Abdullah Tarar said the government of Pakistan has decided to suspend the ongoing operation against terrorist elements and their support infrastructure in Afghanistan as a goodwill gesture.

The Afghan Taliban followed with a similar announcement.  Afghanistan government spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid did not specify a time frame for the pause on the Afghan side. However, he said, his country "will respond courageously to any aggression in the event of a threat."

The governments in Islamabad and Kabul said in separate statements that Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey had requested a pause in fighting over Eid Al Fitr and both agreed.

The halt in operations for Eid Al Fitr from Thursday to Monday had been requested by "brotherly Islamic countries" Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey, Pakistan's Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said.

The announcement came two days after Afghan officials said an airstrike by Pakistan hit a drug rehabilitation hospital in Kabul and killed hundreds of people.

Authorities in Kabul held a mass funeral on Wednesday for some of the victims of the strike. Pakistan has rejected Afghanistan's accusation that it targeted the Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital, insisting its strikes in Kabul and eastern Afghanistan on Monday had been against military facilities. It has dismissed Afghan claims of hundreds of casualties as propaganda.

In a statement, Tarar said the pause in strikes would take effect at midnight on Wednesday and remain in place until midnight Monday.

"Pakistan offers this gesture in good faith and in keeping with the Islamic norms," he said. However, he added, "in case of any cross-border attack, drone attack or any terrorist incident inside Pakistan," the operations will immediately resume with renewed intensity.

Mediation stalled

Afghanistan and Pakistan have faced calls for an immediate end to the conflict, with the overall civilian death toll mounting and concern about those displaced.

The UN said before Monday's strike that at least 76 Afghan civilians had been killed in the fighting since February 26, and that more than 115,000 families had been forced from their homes.

Mediation efforts, however, have so far proved fruitless.

China has sent a special envoy to mediate and pledged to play a "constructive role in de-escalating tensions."

Russia's special representative for Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, said Moscow "will be ready" to help broker talks if both sides request it.

"So far, this has not happened," he told pro-Kremlin outlet Izvestia.

Agencies