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Pakistan-Afghanistan War Update
Pakistan-Afghanistan border clashes continue to escalate
Erdogan says Türkiye to help re-establish ceasefire as Pakistan reports killing 464 Taliban fighters
On 04 March, Dawn reported that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held a telephone conversation with the Turkish President amid intense border clashes with Afghanistan. The Prime Minister announced that, as earlier talks had failed to bring peace to the region, Türkiye would contribute to the re-establishment of the ceasefire between Pakistan and Afghanistan.
On the ground, Pakistan's air forces had destroyed Afghanistan’s Khugyani base along with an aircraft hangar and two warehouses in an airstrike in Nangarhar province as part of Operation Ghazab Lil Haq. Intense firing along the border was also reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Mohmand district, where Pakistan’s security forces carried out more than 50 attacks on Afghanistan’s military targets. Furthermore, on the Torkham border, armed forces killed a notable Afghan commander who attempted to cross the border in Landi Kotal. Additionally, along the Pak-Afghan border in Balochistan, on the night of 3 March, armed forces targeted 50 locations with modern weapons, including anti-tank guided missiles, rocket launchers, long-range mortars, light and heavy artillery, and main battle tanks. Security forces also conducted operations in “sensitive sectors” including Loi Bund, Sambaza, Ghadwana, Jani, Ghaznali, Gulistan, and Shashka within Balochistan, which were used for terrorist activities from across the border.
Amid these escalating military operations and cross-border engagements, the Information Minister stated that in Operation Ghazab Lil Haq against Afghanistan, Pakistan’s armed forces destroyed 188 Afghan Taliban posts and captured 31. In total, 464 Afghan Taliban personnel have been killed and over 665 have been injured since the start of the operation. (“'Righteous Fury': Operation Ghazab lil-Haq,” Dawn, 04 March 2026; "Turkiye will contribute to re-establishment of Pak-Afghan ceasefire, Erdogan tells PM Shehbaz,” Dawn, 03 March 2026)
In Brief
ECONOMY
IMF offer to provide technical assistance denied by Pakistan
On 04 March, The Express Tribune reported that the Pakistan government refused to take the technical assistance offered by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission for the effective implementation of 142 reform actions. The IMF offered assistance to help Pakistan address weaknesses in the country’s governance and anti-corruption frameworks. The government stated that it has enough capacity and capability to implement the action plan. The government has already sought assistance from the United Kingdom’s Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office. The government has to work on 59 priority actions and 83 complementary actions over the next three years, as unveiled by the Prime Minister, to meet IMF conditions. In recent virtual meetings with the IMF review mission, the government expressed the view that it may publish biannual reports on its website, whereas the IMF asked the government to release quarterly reports on the implementation of the governance action plan. (“Govt refuses IMF help on 142 reforms,” The Express Tribune, 04 March 2026)
Government approves import waiver for 45 days though Iran land routes
On 04 March, Dawn reported that the federal government has provided a 45-day Electronic Import Form (EIF) waiver to imports of goods originating from the Central Asian Republics (CARs) and Azerbaijan through Iran. The EIF is basically a mandatory trade document used by commercial banks and regulated by the State Bank of Pakistan. The Quetta Chamber of Commerce and Industry (QCCI) welcomed the decision as it temporarily relaxes procedural requirements with fewer regulatory hurdles, which will benefit Balochistan traders. Also, it permitted trade through Iran’s land trade routes, which will enhance commercial and economic activity in the region, making it more cost-effective and faster. (“QCCI praises import waiver as ‘breath of fresh air’,” Dawn, 4 March 2026)
EXTERNAL
Pakistan warned Iran about Saudi pact, says FM Dar
On 04 March, Dawn reported that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said on Tuesday that Pakistan invoked its defence pact with Saudi Arabia to deter heavier Iranian strikes on Saudi territory, amid intense hostilities involving missile and drone attacks between the United States, Israel, and Iran. Tehran has been targeting US military infrastructure across the Middle East, including in Saudi Arabia. “We have a strategic mutual defence agreement with Saudi Arabia. Everyone knows about that, it is a sovereign agreement and we are bound by that,” he said. The agreement, signed last September, stipulates that any act of aggression against one country will be considered an act of aggression against both. Dar also mentioned that Iranian leaders sought assurances that Saudi soil would not be used for attacks against Iran, which Pakistan attained through dialogue with Saudi Arabia. “And look, unlike all other countries, Saudi Arabia faced the least attacks other than Oman that was the mediator,” he added. (“Pakistan invoked Saudi pact to ‘deter’ Iran strikes: Dar,” Dawn, 04 March 2026)
Pakistan ready to mediate between Iran and US, says FM Dar
On 03 March, Dawn reported that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said that Pakistan was ready to mediate and facilitate talks between the United States and Iran. He added that both Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir had played an important role in diplomatic and defence-level engagements aimed at defusing tensions. He also mentioned that Iran had agreed not to build nuclear weapons, but that the US wanted Tehran to dismantle its entire nuclear programme. He expressed concern over the “sudden” attack and recalled that he also tried to help resolve things between the US and Iran through diplomacy in Istanbul last June. He said Pakistan was in support of the peaceful enrichment of nuclear energy and that the country objected to the US demand of no enrichment. (“DPM Dar says Pakistan ready to facilitate talks between Iran, US,” Dawn, 03 March 2026)
POLITICS & GOVERNANCE
PTI sits out in-camera meeting on security situation
On 04 March, Dawn reported that the government invited the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) to attend an in-camera briefing on national security and regional developments, amid concerns over Afghan Taliban-backed terrorism and the evolving situation in the Middle East. Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs, Rana Sanaullah, met opposition leaders Mehmood Achakzai and Raja Nasir Abbas to convey Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s invitation to parliamentary party heads for the meeting. Sanaullah said the government sought the opposition’s guidance on security challenges and emphasised that dialogue was necessary to address national issues. However, PTI’s political committee decided the party would not attend any meeting unless it was first allowed to meet its jailed founder, Imran Khan. Officials said all parliamentary parties, including PTI chairman Barrister Gohar, had been invited. Meanwhile, the government also briefed coalition partner PPP leaders and highlighted Pakistan’s sensitive regional relations, including ties with Iran and Saudi Arabia. (“PTI ‘opts out’ of today’s in-camera huddle on security,” Dawn, 04 March 2026)
Record number of bills passed in National Assembly over the last year
On 04 March, The Express Tribune reported that the 16th National Assembly recorded its highest legislative output in recent parliamentary history during its second year, according to an annual performance assessment by the Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency (PILDAT), covering 01 March 2025 to 28 February 2026. The report noted that the assembly met for 84 working days, down from 93 in its first year, but total working hours increased to 231. During this period, lawmakers passed 59 bills, a 25.5 per cent increase from the previous year and the highest among recent assemblies. The report also highlighted the passage of the controversial 27th Amendment, which introduced changes to Pakistan’s judicial structure and appointment processes, prompting debate over judicial independence and civil-military balance. Another debated measure was the Elections (Amendment) Bill, 2026, which limited public access to lawmakers’ asset statements. Despite increased lawmaking, attendance declined to 58.8 per cent, several sittings were adjourned due to quorum issues, and the opposition leader’s position remained vacant for five months. (“Record bills passed amid political turmoil,” The Express Tribune, 04 March 2026)
PIMS says Imran’s vision has improved “remarkably”
On 03 March, Dawn reported that the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) said former Prime Minister and PTI founder Imran Khan was examined at Adiala Jail by a medical board for follow-up treatment of his eye condition, with doctors noting that his vision had “improved remarkably”. The board, which included specialists from PIMS and Al-Shifa Trust Eye Hospital, conducted tests, including visual acuity assessment, fundoscopy, slit lamp examination, and optical coherence tomography, after Khan received a second anti-VEGF intravitreal injection used to treat retinal blood vessel damage. Khan has been suffering from right central retinal vein occlusion, which was first identified in January. However, PTI rejected the medical assessment, saying examinations conducted without the presence of Khan’s personal physicians and family lacked transparency. The party demanded that he be transferred to Shifa International Hospital for an independent and comprehensive medical evaluation. (“Pims says Imran’s vision has improved ‘remarkably’ as he undergoes another checkup,” Dawn, 03 March 2026)
SECURITY
Akkakhel residents seek evacuation arrangements amid deteriorating security situation
On 04 March, Dawn reported that the Akkakhel Qaumi Council in KP's Bara tehsil of the Frontier Region Khyber, demanded of the authorities that the entire area be vacated as the law and order situation had ‘gone to the dogs’ following militant attacks on check posts and counter-action by law enforcement agencies. During a meeting with Assistant Commissioner Bara Talha Rafiq Alam, the council members sought sites for the registration of IDPs and the setting up of relief camps. They said that the civilians had been caught in the crossfire as heavy artillery was being used by the security forces to clear the area of militant hideouts. The members of the council also said that the Takfiri group of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) had also occupied an abandoned check post. They agreed to shift to safer places, provided the authorities granted them IDP status and provided them with necessary aid. (“Evacuation sought as security situation worsens in Akkakhel,” Dawn, 04 March 2026)
SOCIETY
Drive to assist out-of-school children launched across Islamabad
On 04 March, Dawn reported that the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training would carry out a household survey in all union councils of Islamabad in order to determine the exact number of out-of-school children in the capital and get them registered with educational institutions or non-formal education schools. To launch the “No Child Left Behind” campaign in Islamabad the Ministry along with its partners like National Council for Human Development, Pakistan Institute of Education, JICA, Building Effective Civil Society (BECS) and J Garrett Trust (JJT) are using the union council wise carpet coverage model which entails door to door surveys with the help of real time data entry and grassroots monitoring. The Ministry pointed out that a survey carried out in 2023 said that there were 89,000 out-of-school children in Islamabad, but the real number might be more. The Ministry stated that the children were not attending schools because their families could not afford it, and forced them to work so as to sustain their households. (“Ministry to conduct household survey in capital to trace out-of-school children,” Dawn, 04 March 2026)
Editorials/Opinions
War in the Middle East
Jawed Naqvi, “That longing for regime change,” Dawn, 03 March 2026
"The theme of regime change reminds me of the two sisters at Aligarh Muslim University who were erudite teachers and voluble in their left-oriented feminism. Prof Waheed Akhtar, a less stridently liberal member of the Urdu faculty, was asked which of the two he found less reprimanding in discussing disputes over a point of view. “The one who isn’t present,” he replied. That’s the lot of rulers and governments too. People tend to prefer the one that isn’t present. It’s only in stories we meet ones that are so enamoured of their rulers that they pray for their lifelong perpetuity."
https://www.dawn.com/news/1977734/that-longing-for-regime-change
Editorial, “Fury vs Promise,” The Express Tribune, 03 March 2026
"War begets more warmongering. So is the case as Iran has responded with full military might to US-Israel aggression, resulting in the assassination of its Supreme Leader, Syed Ali Khamenei, in a major blow to the Islamic Republic. However, the pushback from Iran has taken the entire Middle East by surprise, forcing President Trump to ask Italy and Oman for mediation."
https://tribune.com.pk/story/2595457/fury-vs-promise
Conflict
Muhammad Hamid Zaman, “The long shadow of conflict,” The Express Tribune, 03 March 2026
"Regardless of one's political viewpoint, we can agree that armed conflicts lead to the loss of innocent lives. That person may be a concert goer in the desert, a worker at an airport in a foreign land, a child buried under the rubble in an elementary school or someone whose dwelling happens to be near the border."
https://tribune.com.pk/story/2595456/the-long-shadow-of-conflict
Pakistan-Afghanistan
Arifa Noor, “Other side of the coin,” Dawn, 03 March 2026
"In the midst of upheaval in the region, Pakistan has been busy with its own challenges in the neighbourhood. I wrote ‘struggling’ to then replace it with ‘busy’, for most of the reporting and commentary on local platforms is unequivocal about the success of Pakistan’s attacks on Afghanistan, which began some days ago."
https://www.dawn.com/news/1977736/other-side-of-the-coin
India-Pakistan
Editorial, “Water concerns,” Dawn, 03 March 2026
"Recent reports that India plans to invest $60bn in increasing its water storage capacity on the Jhelum and Chenab rivers confirm official concerns that New Delhi is weaponising the shared resource against Pakistan. The increase in storage capacity from roughly 15 days to nearly two months will expand India’s holding ability on the rivers allocated to Pakistan under the Indus Waters Treaty, giving it unprecedented leverage over downstream flows. In an agrarian economy like ours, where sowing cycles rely on predictable river discharge, even brief interruptions can cause lasting damage. A 55- to 60-day window to regulate flows could enable India to create artificial scarcity during critical crop cycles, especially during the low-flow winter months. The reverse scenario is as alarming. During monsoon surges, large upstream storage gives India the capacity to release accumulated water in concentrated volumes, flooding downstream regions."
https://www.dawn.com/news/1977730/water-concerns
Economy
Editorial, “Tax shortfall,” The Express Tribune, 03 March 2026
"With the tax shortfall widening to Rs450 billion against the downward revised target for the first eight months of FY26 - and Rs670 billion against the original objective - fiscal management is once again under strain. The government's consideration of a second revision to the Rs14.13 trillion annual target reflects not so much prudence as a deeper structural weakness that remains unaddressed."
https://tribune.com.pk/story/2595458/tax-shortfall-3
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