Afghanistan pulls out of Pakistan cricket tournament after Islamabad airstrikes kill 3 athletes

KABUL: Afghanistan has withdrawn its national cricket team from next month’s tri-nation tournament in Pakistan, after three Afghan cricketers were killed in overnight Pakistani military strikes amid the latest flare-up of tensions between the neighbors. 

The deadliest clashes in years between the two countries started last week and were triggered by an unclaimed explosion in Kabul and another in the southeastern province of Paktika, for which the Afghan government blamed the Pakistani military. 

After days of bloody border fighting that killed dozens of soldiers and civilians from both nations, Afghanistan and Pakistan agreed to a 48-hour truce on Wednesday, which was extended as officials from the two countries held talks in Qatar on Saturday. 

However, according to a post on X from the Afghan Taliban government’s chief spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, “Pakistani military forces once again conducted airstrikes on civilian areas in Paktika” on Friday. 

The Afghanistan Cricket Board said on Saturday that three Afghan players were among those killed in the latest airstrikes, with local media outlets placing the death toll at 17. 

“A drone strike in Urgun district of Paktika province has killed three domestic cricket players … following their return from a local tournament in the provincial capital, Sharana … The deceased players have been identified as Sibghatullah, Kabeer Agha and Haroon,” Sher Dil Danish, ACB provincial manager in Paktika, told Arab News.

In a statement issued after the attacks, the ACB said it was withdrawing from the upcoming Tri-Nation T20I Series, which was scheduled to take place in Rawalpindi and Lahore from Nov. 17 to 29. 

Cricket is regarded as the most popular sport in Afghanistan and has