Staff Reporter
Islamabad
Pakistan on Saturday reopened its border with Afghanistan to allow the crossing over of trucks carrying food and essential goods under the Afghan Transit Trade, customs officials informed on Saturday.
The cross-border movement of trucks came a day after Prime Minister Imran Khan had announced the opening of the Chaman-Spinboldak border “to support our Afghan brothers and sisters” amid the coronavirus pandemic.
In the first phase, 50 trucks with fresh fruits and vegetables entered Afghanistan after clearance from customs officials. The officials said that the clearance process was completed late on Friday.
It is pertinent to mention here that Pakistan had sealed the Chaman border on March 1 in order to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus. All cross-border movement was suspended as Islamabad made hectic efforts to screen travelers for the virus.
The prime minister had given directions on Friday to open the Chaman-Spinboldak border as a gesture of support to war-torn Afghanistan.
“Despite the global pandemic of COVID-19, we remain committed to supporting our Afghan brothers and sisters.
