Pakistani political figures call for end to clashes with Taliban

Prominent Pakistani political figures, including Mahmoud Khan Achakzai, Mohsen Dawar and Khushhal Khan Kakar, issued a joint statement demanding an immediate end to clashes between the Taliban and Pakistan.

Achakzai, head of the Pakhtunkhwa Awami National Party and opposition leader in Pakistan's National Assembly; Dawar, head of the National Democratic Movement; and Kakar, head of the Pakhtunkhwa Awami National Party and member of Pakistan's National Assembly, expressed concern over Pashtun civilian casualties from Pakistani airstrikes in Afghan territory.

The statement described the escalation of tensions as an "undeclared war" that has disproportionately affected Pashtuns living on both sides of the border. The signatories noted that a large portion of the victims are Pashtuns and warned that without a change in Pakistan's policy toward Afghanistan, the likelihood of increased civilian casualties remains high.

They criticized the ignoring of Pakistan's parliament in decisions with serious consequences for the region. The politicians attributed extremism and violence, which have killed numerous civilians over decades, to external investments since the 1980s that strengthened violent infrastructures in the region.

Pashtuns have long demanded an end to Pakistan's role as the "frontline state," the dismantling of violent projects by major powers and the start of peaceful, good-neighborly relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan, the statement said.

The signatories also voiced concern over escalating tensions in West Asia, criticizing attacks by the United States and Israel on Iran, and called for an immediate halt to clashes and attacks that threaten global peace.