Tensions on the Edge: What’s Happening Between Pakistan and Afghanistan

13 November 2025

Paul Francis

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The relationship between Pakistan and Afghanistan has always been uneasy, but in recent weeks it has taken a serious turn. Cross-border clashes, air strikes, failed peace talks and growing accusations have pushed both nations into one of their most dangerous stand-offs in years. For many observers, the dispute has become a test of whether the region can avoid another long and destabilising conflict.

Helicopter flying over a sandy desert with rocky mountains in the background. Clear blue sky, conveying a sense of adventure and isolation.

A Fragile Border and a Growing Crisis

The Pakistan–Afghanistan border stretches for more than 1,600 miles across harsh mountains and remote valleys. It is one of the most difficult borders in the world to control. Communities on both sides share cultural and ethnic ties, yet it is also an area long associated with insurgency, smuggling and shifting alliances.

Tensions rose sharply in October 2025 after Pakistan accused militants based in Afghanistan of launching deadly attacks on its territory. The main group blamed was the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an organisation ideologically aligned with the Afghan Taliban. Islamabad claims that the TTP uses Afghan soil as a safe haven to regroup and plan strikes. The Afghan government, run by the Taliban since 2021, has repeatedly denied this, insisting it does not allow any group to attack a neighbouring country.

In response to a series of cross-border raids, Pakistan carried out air strikes inside Afghanistan, reportedly targeting militant positions near Kabul and across border provinces such as Khost and Paktika. Afghanistan retaliated with its own artillery fire along the frontier, resulting in casualties on both sides.

Diplomatic Frustration and Failed Talks

The violence sparked international concern, prompting Qatar and Turkey to step in as mediators. Both countries helped broker a temporary ceasefire in mid-October, but the calm was short-lived. Within weeks, the agreement had collapsed, with each side accusing the other of breaking the terms.

Talks held in Istanbul were meant to restore dialogue, yet they ended in stalemate. Pakistan demanded firm guarantees that militants operating from Afghanistan would be disarmed or expelled. Afghanistan, in turn, accused Pakistan of violating its sovereignty with repeated air operations. Efforts by Iran to offer mediation have also yet to produce results.

This latest breakdown highlights a deeper mistrust between the two governments. Pakistan once saw the Taliban’s rise to power in Afghanistan as a strategic opportunity to ensure a friendly regime on its western border. Instead, the relationship has soured, with Islamabad viewing the Taliban’s inability to rein in the TTP as a major threat to its internal security.

Why the Situation Matters

The border conflict is more than a local issue; it has major implications for the entire region. Pakistan’s western frontier has long been volatile, and instability there risks spilling into its own border provinces such as Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. If the violence continues, Pakistan may face a surge of displaced civilians and renewed domestic attacks from TTP factions.

Camouflage uniform with Pakistan flag patch, "Special Services Wing" badge, and pencil in pocket. Hand holding a paper, suggesting readiness.

For Afghanistan, the fighting threatens what remains of its already fragile economy. Cross-border trade routes with Pakistan are crucial lifelines for goods, fuel and humanitarian supplies. When the border closes or becomes unsafe, Afghan markets suffer shortages and price spikes, deepening the country’s ongoing economic crisis.

Neighbouring countries are also on alert. Iran, which shares a long border with both Afghanistan and Pakistan, has offered to mediate out of concern that the fighting could spread or disrupt trade routes. Further north, Central Asian nations such as Uzbekistan and Tajikistan are worried about militant movements and refugee flows across their southern borders.

Even China is watching closely. It has invested heavily in Pakistan’s infrastructure through the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a flagship element of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative. Escalating violence could undermine those projects and threaten Chinese personnel working in the region.

The Broader Picture: Security and Trust

Flags of Afghanistan and Pakistan on a detailed map with mountains, highlighted by warm sunlight, creating a diplomatic tone.

At the heart of the crisis is a question of control. Pakistan believes that the Afghan Taliban can restrain militant groups operating from within its borders, but evidence so far suggests that the Taliban either cannot or will not take decisive action. Some analysts argue that the Afghan leadership faces internal divisions, with hardline elements unwilling to confront groups that once fought alongside them.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s military leadership faces pressure at home to show strength. Repeated attacks by the TTP have killed hundreds of Pakistani soldiers and civilians over the past two years. Failure to respond decisively could be seen as weakness by a population already frustrated with economic hardship and political instability.

Both sides, then, are trapped in a cycle of accusation and retaliation, where every incident deepens mistrust.

Possible Futures

If diplomacy fails, further escalation remains a real risk. More air strikes or cross-border raids could ignite a wider conflict that neither country can afford. However, there are also reasons for cautious optimism. Regional powers, including Turkey, Qatar and Iran, have a vested interest in avoiding another prolonged war. Their mediation efforts, while limited so far, may keep communication channels open.

Trade could also serve as a bridge rather than a barrier. Pakistan and Afghanistan have both expressed interest in expanding economic cooperation through transit agreements and energy links. If stability can be restored, these could offer incentives for restraint.

The real test will be whether both governments can separate militant issues from broader political disputes. Without that, the ceasefire agreements will remain temporary, and the border will continue to be a flashpoint for years to come.

Impact Beyond the Border

The outcome of this conflict could shape regional security for the foreseeable future. A stable Afghanistan benefits not only Pakistan but also Central Asia and even Europe, which has faced migration pressures after every major Afghan crisis. Conversely, a breakdown in relations could fuel extremism, disrupt trade routes and draw in larger powers seeking influence.

For now, the international community is urging restraint. The question is whether Pakistan and Afghanistan can find common ground before local skirmishes evolve into something much larger.

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Guy Fawkes, Dick Turpin and the Hidden Histories of York

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Every year, on 5 November, fireworks light up the night sky across Britain. Guy Fawkes Night remembers the man who tried, and failed, to blow up Parliament in 1605. But while the story of the Gunpowder Plot is well known, fewer people remember that it began in York, the city where Fawkes was born.

A lit sparkler emits bright, colorful sparks against a dark background, creating a festive and lively atmosphere.

York’s history is filled with legends like his: rebels, saints, artists and outlaws. The city’s cobbled streets and medieval towers hold centuries of stories that helped shape England itself.

Guy Fawkes: York’s Most Infamous Son

Guy Fawkes was born in 1570 on Stonegate, one of York’s most famous streets. He attended St Peter’s School, a place that still stands today, and was raised a Catholic in an age of persecution.

After his father’s death, Fawkes travelled to the continent and fought for Catholic Spain against Protestant forces in the Netherlands. His faith and his disillusionment with England’s leadership set the stage for his later actions.

In 1605, Fawkes joined a group of conspirators led by Robert Catesby. Their plan was to blow up the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament, killing King James I and replacing him with a Catholic monarch.

The plot failed when an anonymous letter revealed the plan. Fawkes was caught guarding barrels of gunpowder beneath the House of Lords. He was tortured, tried, and executed in 1606.

More than four centuries later, his name lives on in fireworks, effigies and the modern idea of rebellion.

Dick Turpin: The Romanticised Outlaw

If Guy Fawkes represents rebellion through ideology, Dick Turpin represents rebellion through legend.

Turpin, born in Essex around 1705, began as a butcher before turning to crime. He joined a gang that specialised in robbing travellers and farmhouses before becoming famous as a highwayman.

His career ended in York, where he was tried and executed in 1739. He was buried in St George’s Churchyard. Although evidence of his exact resting place is debated, the legend endures.

The Victorian imagination turned Turpin into a folk hero. The tale of his supposed overnight ride from London to York on his horse Black Bess is pure fiction, but it helped create the enduring image of the charming rogue: a figure who defied authority but captured hearts.

Alcuin of York: The Scholar Who Shaped Europe

Long before Fawkes or Turpin, York produced one of the most important thinkers of the early Middle Ages.

Alcuin of York, born in the eighth century, was a scholar, poet and teacher educated at the cathedral school that would later become part of York Minster. His brilliance caught the attention of Charlemagne, who invited him to the court of the Frankish Empire.

Alcuin helped lead the Carolingian Renaissance, a revival of learning that preserved classical knowledge and influenced European education for centuries. Although he spent much of his life abroad, he always referred to himself as “Alcuin of York”.

St William of York: The Saint and the Controversy

In the twelfth century, York’s archbishop William FitzHerbert became a controversial figure. Accused of corruption and removed from office, he was later reinstated and revered for his piety. After his death, miracles were reported at his tomb, and he was canonised as Saint William of York.

His shrine in York Minster became one of the great pilgrimage sites of medieval England.

Artists and Thinkers of a Later Age

York continued to inspire creativity long after its medieval prime. The painter William Etty, born in the city in 1787, became one of the first British artists to specialise in the human form, earning both acclaim and criticism for his classical style.

Meanwhile, Laurence Sterne, clergyman and novelist, lived and worked in York while writing The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman. His playful, unconventional storytelling influenced generations of writers from James Joyce to Virginia Woolf.

A City of Layers

York’s character lies in its contrasts: faith and rebellion, art and violence, beauty and fear. From the Roman walls to Viking artefacts, from medieval guildhalls to Georgian architecture, the city has absorbed every age of English history.

It gave the world both a revolutionary and a saint, both a scholar and an outlaw. Perhaps that is why York endures. It remains a place where the past never fully sleeps, and where history’s ghosts still walk the cobbled streets.