(MENAFN- Live Mint) The Pakistan Army clashed with Afghan forces after firing at multiple spots along the Pak-Afghan border in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, as per a Dawn report on Saturday.

The intense exchange began after Taliban force allegedly opened fire at multiple Pakistani border posts on late Saturday night.

“In a prompt and intense response, Pakistani forces effectively targeted several Afghan border posts,” Dawn reported quoting security officials.

Multiple Afghan posts and militant formations have reportedly been heavily impacted, the officials said.

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According to a report by The Express Tribune, the attacks on Pakistan were made to facilitate the entry of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) into the Pakistani territory.

However, the Taliban forces have claimed that the attack was carried out in response to Pakistan's air strikes on Afghanistan last week.

Islamabad did not confirm that it was behind the attacks, but called on Kabul "to stop harbouring the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on its soil," Dawn reported.

What is TTP?

The Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), also known as Pakistani Taliban, is a Deobandi jihadist Pashtun nationalist militant group operating along the Afghan–Pakistani border. It is an internationally designated terrorist group.

The TTP came together in 2007 as an alliance of formerly disparate militant groups. It was established after Pakistan carried out military operations against Al-Qaida-related terrorists in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.

Also Read | Afghanistan's Taliban forms commission to look into TTP's anti-Pak acts Also Read | Afghanistan slams Pakistan's air strikes in Kabul - 'Violent and heinous act' Who is the founder of TTP?

The TTP was founded by Baitullah Mehsud, who has since died. According to the United Nations, the group has between 30,000 and 35,000 members.

What does the TTP want?

According to the UN website,“TTP's stated objective is the overthrow of the elected government of Pakistan in order to establish an emirate based on its interpretation of Islamic law. To that end, TTP has worked to destabilise Pakistan by directly attacking the Pakistani army and assassinating politicians.”

Pakistan closes border with Afghanistan

Pakistan closed border crossings with Afghanistan on Sunday, Pakistani officials said, following exchanges of fire between the forces of the two countries.

While the firing exchanges were mostly over on Sunday, intermittent gunfire in Pakistan's Kurram area still continued, Reuters reported quoting officials.

Pakistan's two main border crossings with Afghanistan, at Torkham and Chaman, were closed on Sunday, local officials said. At least three minor crossings, at Kharlachi, Angoor Adda and Ghulam Khan, were also closed, local officials said.

There was no immediate comment from Kabul on the closing of the border.

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