While Pakistan hosts high-level talks in Islamabad on 29–30 March 2026 aimed at reducing tensions between the United States, Israel, and Iran, a starkly different reality is unfolding just across its border in Afghanistan.
The meetings, involving regional powers such as Saudi Arabia, Türkiye, and Egypt, focus on diplomatic solutions, including proposals to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and possibly facilitate dialogue between Washington and Tehran. Pakistan has positioned itself as a mediator in these discussions, highlighting its role in stabilizing the region.
Yet at the same time on 29 March, Pakistani forces shelled residential areas in Asadabad, Kunar province, killing at least one civilian and injuring more than 16 others, most of them women and children. This comes only days after reports that over 400 civilians were killed in airstrikes in Kabul, showing a widening humanitarian crisis.
On the first day of Eid, a female doctor, Sahar Zawalzai, and her young son, Mihan, were shot dead by Pakistani forces in the Brikot area of Nari district, Kunar province. Their bodies remained at the site for nearly 48 hours, as residents were unable to retrieve them due to ongoing firing. Later, the bodies were recovered and transferred to Asadabad for funeral rites.
Residents across Kunar and Nuristan describe blocked roads, forced displacement, and pervasive fear. In some areas, bodies of victims remained on the ground for hours—or even days—because ongoing firing made retrieval too dangerous.
Conversations with families in these provinces reveal the human toll: children going hungry, parents too frightened to return home, and communities unable to celebrate Eid safely. Ordinary people bear the consequences of decisions made far away in diplomatic halls.
The contrast is stark. In Islamabad, officials speak of mediation, peace, and regional stability. In eastern Afghanistan, civilians face shelling, loss, and constant terror. Diplomacy loses its meaning when it is paired with violence against vulnerable populations.
For Afghans living in border provinces, this is not about global strategy or international negotiations. It is about survival. Until their safety is guaranteed, talk of peace elsewhere remains distant—and almost meaningless.
