Torkham border crossing remains closed

The Torkham border crossing on the Pakistani side of the border with Afghanistan was crowded with hundreds of people on Thursday, amid tight controls.

The crossing at Torkham, now manned on the Afghan side by the Islamic Emirate forces, has long been the busiest between the two countries, but since last month has seen a sharp dip in pedestrian crossings as tight controls have been imposed.

The Islamic Emirate last month seized power 20 years after they were ousted by a U.S.-led invasion for refusing to hand over al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in the wake of Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.

“Why we left Afghanistan? It was because there was no security in Afghanistan,” said a woman who had entered Pakistan with her family, who said she was migrating to Canada.

Others said they were hoping to return to Afghanistan and found themselves stranded due to the strict checks imposed at the border crossing.

“I have a Passport, as well as a ‘Tazkira’ (Afghan National ID), but they are still not allowing me to go,“ said Said Hakeem from Nangarhar.

“They are saying that this Tazkira and Passport are fake. Although there is a visa in my passport also,” Hakeem added.

Meanwhile, the Islamic Emirate officials have urged Afghans not to leave, saying they are needed to help them run the country and make it prosper in the future.