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CHAMAN: Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to extend more facilities at Chaman border crossing point of Bab-i-Dosti.
The border crossing will now remain open for movement of pedestrians and trade from 8:00 a.m to 6:00 p.m while the movement of trucks loaded with trade goods will be allowed from 8:00 a.m to 8:00 p.m.
Earlier, thousands of people from Pakistan rushed into Afghanistan as Chaman-Spin Boldak gate reopened earlier this month, nearly a month after the border crossing was closed for pedestrians and trade by the Taliban.
The Chaman border crossing is the second-largest commercial border point between the two countries which reopened after talks between the Afghan and Pakistan governments, Pakistani media reported.
“This border was closed for one month and three days. People were in great distress and discomfort. There was no work, no food,” said Bacha, an Afghan national. The crossing, a vital source of customs revenue for the cash-strapped government in Afghanistan, was originally closed by Pakistani authorities due to security threats.
The reopening should come as a relief to the Taliban government in Kabul, which desperately needs the customs revenues from the border posts. Its cash-strapped economy has few other legitimate sources of foreign revenue.
