A body lying for several days at the zero point of the Torkham border crossing briefly brought Pakistan and Afghanistan to agree on a temporary ceasefire, as both sides attempted to resolve the issue of identification and possible handover.
According to sources, the ceasefire was arranged primarily to allow tribal jirga representatives from both sides to examine the body and determine its identity before facilitating its transfer.
Members of the Pakistani jirga said the body was in a deteriorated condition due to the passage of time. However, based on available signs and clothing, they believed the deceased appeared to be an Afghan labourer.
“We told the Afghan jirga members that the body appears to belong to an Afghan worker and they should take it,” a participant of the Pakistani jirga said.
Sources said the Afghan jirga members briefly left the location to consult their authorities but did not return before the ceasefire period ended.
“As the ceasefire period expired and the Afghan jirga did not come back, we were also compelled to leave the area,” Pakistani jirga participants stated.
Members of the Pakistani jirga said they would once again appeal to both governments to resolve the issue through humanitarian consideration.
“If the Afghan jirga ultimately refuses to receive the body, we will perform the burial ourselves on humanitarian grounds,” a jirga member said.
According to sources, Afghan jirga representatives later informed their counterparts that they had not received permission from their higher authorities to take custody of the body.
As a result, despite the temporary ceasefire, the body remained at the zero point of the Torkham border.
Sources said the deceased was believed to be an Afghan citizen, but the issue of jurisdiction and strict border demarcation prevented the immediate transfer of the body between the two sides.
