Violence has reignited across the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, with the Pakistani army claiming the deaths of 5 of its personnel and 25 militants on Sunday, October 26. The recent clashes unfolded in the violence-ridden districts of Kurram and North Waziristan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Pakistan has claimed that armed militants allegedly supported by the Taliban have crossed the border from the Afghan side to attack Pakistani personnel.
Pakistan’s Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) accused the Taliban-led Afghan government of failing to curb cross-border terrorism, specifically from groups like the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), whom they have started to refer to as ‘Fitna al Khwarij’.
The violence has continued even while a second round of mediated talks goes on in Istanbul, facilitated by Qatar and Turkey, aimed at implementing a ceasefire discussed earlier this month.
Pakistani Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has warned that failure to secure verifiable anti-terror pledges could lead to “open war”. It is notable here that Asif has a habit of declaring war and dire consequences on TV and international events, even while his government back home tries desperately to negotiate ceasefires.
The Taliban government in Afghanistan has been denying harbouring militants. They have warned Pakistan to stop hostilities along the 2,640-km Durand Line.
In the meantime, while the Pakistan-Afghanistan violence continues, US President Donald Trump has already claimed credit for the future eventuality of the conflict stopping.
#Watch | At an event on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Malaysia, U.S. President Donald Trump said he would resolve the conflict between Pakistan and Afghanistan “very quickly,” praising Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army chief Asim Munir as “great people.” His remarks… pic.twitter.com/3Vb7N8V1jx
— The Hindu (@the_hindu) October 27, 2025
On October 26, during the ASEAN Summit in Malaysia, Trump said, “I heard that Pakistan and Afghanistan have started up, but I’ll get that solved very quickly. I know them both, and I have no doubt we’re going to get that done quickly. I can do it nicely. My administration has ended 8 wars in 8 months. Nobody has done anything like this in history. US will be proud to help solve this conflict.”
Earlier, on October 18, he remarked, “That’s an easy one for me to solve if I have to solve it. In the meantime, I have to run the USA, but I love solving wars.”
