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PESHAWAR: At least six Pakistani soldiers and six militants were killed in a suicide attack near the country’s border with Afghanistan, a police official said on Friday, amid a fragile ceasefire between Islamabad and Kabul that paused days of intense fighting between the two countries this month.

The South Asian neighbors engaged in fierce ground fighting, and Pakistan also launched airstrikes across their contested frontier, killing dozens and wounding hundreds, before they reached a 48-hour truce that is due to end at 1300 GMT on Friday.

The soldiers were killed after one of the militants rammed an explosives-laden car into the Khadi fort that served as a military camp in the North Waziristan district, followed by an intense gunbattle between the two sides.

“Security forces swiftly responded, repelling the attack and engaging the terrorists in a fierce battle. Sadly, six security personnel were martyred and over a dozen others sustained injuries,” Meraj Khan, an officer at the Mir Ali police control room, told Arab News.

“Security forces managed to kill six terrorists during the confrontation.”

Khan said the area has been cordoned off and a clearance operation is currently underway to eliminate any potential threats. Pakistan’s army did not immediately comment on the attack.

Militant violence in Pakistan has been a major irritant in its relations with Afghanistan, since the Taliban returned to power in Kabul after the departure of US-led forces in 2021.

Pakistani security forces have killed 88 Pakistani Taliban militants in separate engagements in the last two days, Pakistani state media reported on Friday.

The latest conflict between the two countries was triggered after Islamabad demanded Kabul rein in militants who had stepped up attacks in Pakistan, saying they operated from havens in Afghanistan.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Thursday that Pakistan “retaliated” as it lost patience with Afghanistan following a series of militant attacks, but was ready to hold talks to resolve the conflict.

Kabul denies the charge and accuses the Pakistani military of spreading misinformation about Afghanistan, provoking border tensions, and sheltering Daesh-linked militants to undermine its stability and sovereignty.

Islamabad denies the accusations.

Although the two countries have clashed in the past, the fighting this month is their worst in decades. It has drawn the attention of �������� and Qatar, who have mediated and sought to stop the fighting.

KARACHI: Pakistani Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Thursday held high-level interactions with officials from the United States (US), China and Japan in Washington DC, seeking to deepen Pakistan’s economic partnerships, advance reform efforts, and promote digital and sustainable growth.

The interactions were held on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank meetings as Islamabad strives for a sustained economic recovery under a $7 billion IMF loan program, secured in September last year.

Aurangzeb delivered a keynote address at the Atlantic Council on ‘Reform Efforts in Pakistan & the Challenges Ahead,’ at which he highlighted external validation of the country’s reform agenda by the IMF and international rating agencies.

He detailed reforms planned for Pakistan Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), reconstitution of the National Finance Commission (NFC), measures to boost private sector-led growth, and a liberal tariff policy aimed at increasing competitiveness and exports.

“The Finance Minister held a productive meeting with Congressman French Hill, Chairman of the US House Financial Services Committee,” the Pakistani finance ministry said in a statement. “Both sides discussed avenues to deepen Pakistan–US economic and financial cooperation, with particular emphasis on the digitization of financial services, the new economy, mineral development, and broader IT collaboration.”

Aurangzeb then met Liao Min, Deputy Finance Minister of China, and briefed him on the recently concluded staff-level agreement (SLA) with the IMF for a $1.2 billion loan tranche, describing it as a strong external validation of Pakistan’s economic reform agenda.

He apprised Liao of the latest progress on the issuance of Panda Bonds in the Chinese market and sought China’s support for Pakistan’s membership in the New Development Bank.

“The Minister welcomed further investment from Chinese companies in ICT, agriculture, industry, and mineral sectors, and extended an invitation to the Deputy Finance Minister to visit Pakistan,” the finance ministry said.

In his meeting with the S&P Global team, Aurangzeb noted that all three major rating agencies are now aligned in their outlook on Pakistan, terming these developments as evidence of the external confidence in the government’s reform trajectory.

He delivered a keynote address at a Regional Roundtable on Digital Transformation in Tax Administration, organized by the World Bank, sharing details of the Transformation Plan for the FBR aimed at building a modern, transparent, and efficient tax administration. Highlighting that tax collection increased from 8.8 percent of GDP in 2024 to 10.24 percent in 2025, he elaborated on the end-to-end digitalization of core processes, use of digital tools for economic integration and documentation, and Pakistan Customs’ initiatives to curb under-invoicing and enhance trade facilitation.

The finance minister also met with Nobumitsu Hayashi, Governor of the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), and welcomed JBIC’s formal commitment to join the Reko Diq lender group, noting that this move would strengthen investor confidence and encourage Japanese businesses to expand their presence in Pakistan.

Located in the insurgency-hit Balochistan province, the Reko Diq mines have one of the world’s largest gold and copper deposits. The project has the potential to generate $90 billion over the next 37 years.

“He (Aurangzeb) emphasized the government’s priority on ensuring security for foreign investors and identified new avenues for bilateral cooperation,” the Pakistani finance ministry said.

In another meeting with Bangladesh Special Envoy Lutfey Y. Siddiqi, the finance minister reaffirmed the critical role of the private sector in leading economic growth, supported by a public sector ecosystem, according to Aurangzeb’s ministry. Both officials agreed on the IT sector’s game-changing potential to create quality graduate jobs and emphasized the need for knowledge-sharing and capacity-building.

The finance minister also addressed a JP Morgan Investment seminar on Pakistan’s Economic & Monetary Policy Outlook, briefing investors on the positive momentum of the economy fueled by sound macro management and enhanced fiscal and external sector stability. In parallel, Governor State Bank of Pakistan, Jameel Ahmed, and other officials conducted important sideline meetings with officials from Moody’s and the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC).