Central Bank of Afghanistan Cracks Down on Pakistani Currency Use Amid Protests and Clashes at Torkham Border

The Central Bank of Afghanistan has taken steps to promote the use of the Afghani currency in the country's southwestern region and is planning to ban the use of Pakistani currency, according to reports from Khaama Press. Residents of the southwestern provinces have been instructed to cease their commercial transactions using the Pakistani currency and have been given a deadline of two and a half months to switch to the Afghani currency. They are also advised to avoid dealing with foreign currencies.

The Central Bank's announcement specifically warned residents of Kandahar, Uruzgan, Helmand, Zabul, and Dykundi provinces to make trade transactions only in the national currency. After the specified date, all transactions made with other currencies will be deemed illegal, and legal action will be taken against violators. At the same time, protests have broken out over the closure of the Torkham crossing, with clashes continuing for the fifth consecutive day.

Protesters have accused Pakistan of regularly closing the border during the fruit and vegetable season and have called for political differences between Afghanistan and Pakistan to be resolved through diplomatic channels. The closure of Torkham has reportedly cost traders on both sides of the border about USD 1 million. Clashes were triggered by the construction of a new post along the border, resulting in the closure of the busy Torkham border crossing after Pakistani and Afghan Taliban forces started firing at each other, according to local officials.