Pak-Afghan border: trench to help stop intrusion of terrorists

The completion of 480-km-long trench along Pak-Afghan border in Balochistan was part of Pakistan's counter terrorism strategy to stop intrusion of terrorists as well as drug and arms mafias from Afghanistan into the country, security officials said. However, the move may affect the already estranged relations between the two neighbours recently put on track first with the visit of Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to Islamabad and on the recently-concluded London conference on Afghanistan.
Afghanistan considers its 2,640-kilometer long border with Pakistan as disputed, which is internationally recognised as the Durand Line. Afghanistan's Kandahar Police chief has reportedly opposed the construction of trench, saying that people of Afghanistan have never recognised the border. But authorities in Pakistan consider the Durand Line dispute as a dead issue, describing the trench as an effective step to check cross-border infiltration of terrorists.
Official sources told Business Recorder that the work on the trench was completed in mid November, 2014 and it has effectively helped the authorities check illegal cross-border movement. The work on eight-foot- deep and 10-foot-wide trench started in May 2014 and was completed at a cost of Rs 260 million with the help of federal and provincial governments; and given the porous nature of the border it has further been secured with barbed wire at some points while the remaining will also be fenced wherever and whenever deemed necessary.
According to the officials, the trench was also necessary to stop the militants associated with Jundullah and Jaish al-Nasr groups who have been carrying out terrorist attacks inside Iran which led the Iranian government, on several occasions, to express its deep concern and demand that Pakistan takes effective measures to check the militants' movements along the border. The trench was completed under the supervision of the Frontier Corps, Balochistan and is part of the government's counter terrorism efforts; sources pointed out that the incidents of cross border infiltration have considerably declined after the trench was completed.
An official of the FC who declined to be named said that though it was not possible to completely secure the border, yet the trench has prevented the militants' organised intrusion inside Pakistan, as the security forces are also patrolling alongside the border. According to him, in the past 150 militants from across the border attacked Pakistan security forces that resulted in many casualties. "It was for this reason necessary to take such measures to secure our border," he added.
The sources further said that Inspector General of Frontier Corps Balochistan Mohammad Ejaz Shahid after assuming the command of FC Balochistan, decided to undertake effective measures for better border management. They said that besides the digging of the trench, IG FC also undertook several administrative and security measures such as installation of Smart Verification Alert System (SVAS) at Quetta, Chaman and Taftan for effective identification and arrest of foreign militants, drug and arms mafias.
Sources further revealed that the SVAS is linked to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), the Immigration and Passport Office, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), cellular mobile phone operators, the virtual private network and vehicle registration data to assist the authorities to detect forged identifications.
Colonel Faheem, a local commander of FC, who recently arranged a media visit to the under construction 480-km-long trench, said the sole purpose of the trench was to effectively stop the illegal cross border movement and infiltration of terrorists, smugglers, drugs and arms mafias. He said the trench was built under the supervision of the Frontier Corps, Balochistan. According to him, hundreds of personnel of the Zhob Militia of Frontier Corps Balochistan, Noshki Militia of Qila Saifullah Squads, Taftan Rifles, Mekran Squads and Dalbandin Rifles took part in the digging of the trench with the help of more than 70 excavators and dampers.