Closed for business: Authorities seal Torkham border over ‘security concerns’

PTI’s anti-drone protest, Afghan Loya Jirga partly prompted the closure.

LANDIKOTAL:

Torkham Border was closed on Saturday for security reasons as hundreds of people, including children and patients, waiting to cross the border from both sides were left stranded in the cold.

Following the suicide blast at Customs Clearance Office at Torkham on Thursday in which 26 people were injured, the office remained closed till 2pm on Friday. By mid-day Friday, the office resumed operations as a large crowd had gathered in wait.

However, the border closed again 7am Saturday by authorities for security concerns. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) anti-drone protest in Peshawar and the Afghan Loya Jirga in Kabul are said to be possible reasons for the closure, said an official of the political administration Amjid Khan.

“Usually pedestrians are allowed to enter and exit, however, no one was being let through and even the small entrance is sealed off,” said political administration official Mairaj Khan. Border security increased patrolling and checking following Thursday’s suicide attack. More security officials were deployed in the aftermath.

According to Khan, the border is usually open from 7am to 7pm and people can easily pass through after being cleared by law enforcement agencies. But no cross-border movement was allowed on Saturday.

Later during the evening, border authorities allowed patients requiring immediate medical assistance and those carrying their dead for burial across the border.

Tribesmen requesting anonymity expressed their displeasure over the disruption in cross-border movement. They claimed the political administration officials had closed the border for “no obvious reason” and suggested the gates at Torkham should remain open despite security risks.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 24^th, 2013.