United Nations, Feb 28 UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for an immediate cessation of hostilities between Afghanistan and Pakistan, his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.
"I can tell you that the Secretary-General is deeply concerned by the escalation of violence between Afghanistan and Pakistan and the impact that violence is having on civilian populations," Dujarric told a daily briefing on Friday (local time).
The UN chief reiterated his call on the parties to resolve any differences through diplomacy, the spokesperson added.
On the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, Dujarric said, according to UN humanitarians, years of conflict, poverty and natural disasters, such as drought and earthquakes, have left nearly half the country's population in need of humanitarian aid, reports Xinhua news agency.
"This number will only increase if the fighting goes on or escalates," he said.
"We continue to call on all parties to the conflict to comply with their obligations under international humanitarian law; in particular, to ensure that civilians are protected at all times, as well as civilian infrastructure," Dujarric said.
At least 19 people were killed and 26 others injured in the eastern provinces of Khost and Paktika in Afghanistan following border clashes with Pakistan, Hamdullah Fitrat, deputy spokesman for the Afghan government, said.
The majority of the casualties are women and children, Fitrat added.
Meanwhile, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid has claimed that a "special circle" in Pakistan has started a mission to destabilise the region after tensions escalated between Kabul and Islamabad, local media reported on Friday.
While addressing a press conference in Kandahar on Friday, Mujahid urged regional nations to stop the "troublemakers." He stated that Afghanistan's air forces had precisely targeted military centres of Pakistan, Afghanistan's Ariana News reported.
When asked about the Taliban's stance on whether regional nations call for a halt to the conflict, he said that Afghanistan seeks a peaceful resolution of issues and has engaged in several rounds of negotiations with Pakistan; however, Islamabad was not prepared to resolve the issues through dialogue.
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