Shooting Baku In Pakistan-Afghanistan Border, Six Civilians And One Army Died

JAKARTA - A deadly gun battle broke out on the borders of Afghanistan and Pakistan, when six civilians and a soldier were killed on Sunday, officials said.

The six civilians who died were Pakistanis, while one soldier who died came from Afghanistan.

The Pakistani army said Afghan border forces had fired "unwarranted and blind heavy weapons shots, including artillery/mortiles to civilians" on the Chaman border, which connects Pakistan's western Blochistan province with Afghanistan's southern Kandahar province.

In addition to killing six civilians, Afghan fire is also said to have injured 17 others on the Pakistani side.

Pakistan's military said in a statement that as a result of the action, its troops took revenge.

Meanwhile, Afghan security sources said the clashes began after Pakistani forces demanded Afghan forces stop building new checkpoints on their border sides.

Police spokesman Kandahar Hafiz Saber said one Afghan soldier was killed and 10 others, including three civilians, were injured.

Afghanistan official Noor Ahmad, in Kandahar, told Reuters the situation had returned to normal after the two sides held a meeting.

As a result of the incident, the busy Afghan border crossing in Chaman, which is used for trade and transit, was closed for several hours before reopening, officials on both sides said.

To note, the same crossing was closed for a few days last month, following similar clashes.