Afghanistan, Pakistan narrate conflicting accounts of same story

Afghanistan and Pakistan are quibbling again but this time over the identity of an elderly man who was seen in a video throwing himself under a car after being allegedly denied permission to cross the border.

A man who was barred from crossing the Torkham border by Pakistani authorities on July 2 was an Afghan national, the Taliban administration's embassy in Pakistan has said.

On the other hand, the Embassy of Pakistan in Kabul had stated that the man in question was a Pakistani national who also happened to be the father of Pakistani journalist.

"An Afghan, who was standing among hundreds of other Afghans and wanted to show his ID card, out of necessity and despair, threw himself under a car and was martyred," Sardar Ahmad Khan Shekib, charge d'affaires of the Taliban administration's embassy in Islamabad said, as per Khaama Press.

Torkham border connects Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) with Afghanistan's Nangarhar province.

In March, Pakistan had allowed Afghan nationals to cross the Torkham border to return to Afghanistan on the basis of their national identity cards.

The Taliban embassy shared Sardar Ahmed Shakib's statements on its Twitter page, in which the embassy condemned the situation of Afghans in the Torkham border and urged Pakistani authorities to address the situation.

On the other hand, the Embassy of Pakistan in Kabul had stated that the man in question was a Pakistani national who also happened to be the father of Pakistani journalist.

Reports and videos from earlier that day that were widely circulated showed a man hurling himself under a car, Khaama Press reported.

Citing reports the media outlet said that the Pakistani police had demanded payment in cash in order to let him passage; however, the individual was reportedly unable to pay and killed himself as a result.

This is another instance of conflicting accounts of the same event, but it does highlight the persistent complaints that Afghans continue to be harassed by Pakistani forces in Torkham and Spin Boldak.