Islamabad / Riyadh / Kabul:Saudi Arabia on Monday welcomed the ceasefire agreement reached between Pakistan and Afghanistan following several days of intense border hostilities, expressing its support for ongoing efforts to promote lasting peace and stability between the two neighboring nations.
According to a statement issued on the Saudi Foreign Ministry’s X account, the Kingdom expresses its welcome of the signing by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and Afghanistan of an immediate ceasefire and the establishment of mechanisms to consolidate lasting peace and stability between the two countries, during the round of negotiations held in Doha.
The ceasefire, mediated by Qatar and Turkiye, was finalized early Sunday morning after high-level talks in Doha. Both sides agreed to hold a follow-up round of negotiations in Istanbul on October 25 to build upon the framework for sustained peace.
The truce comes after deadly exchanges were reported from Angoor Adda and Afghanistan’s Urgun and Barmal districts in Paktika province, where precision strikes targeted the outlawed Hafiz Gul Bahadur group, reportedly killing dozens of fighters.
The escalation had followed a gun-and-bomb attack aimed at a military installation in North Waziristan, which Pakistani forces successfully foiled. Pakistan has suffered multiple casualties in recent weeks during intelligence-based operations against terrorists as militant attacks surged across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, following the TTP’s withdrawal from its ceasefire agreement with Islamabad.
Since the Taliban takeover of Kabul in 2021, Pakistan had hoped for cooperation in counterterrorism efforts. However, the Taliban’s refusal to act against the TTP has strained relations, with Islamabad urging Kabul to prevent the use of Afghan soil for cross-border terrorism an allegation Afghanistan continues to deny.