What to know about the latest fighting between Afghanistan and Pakistan

By MUNIR AHMED, ELENA BECATOROS and E. EDUARDO CASTILLO

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan is in an “open war” with Afghanistan, Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif said Friday, with fighting escalating into the most serious armed confrontation between the two uneasy neighbors since a Qatari-mediated ceasefire in October.

The two countries share a long, complicated history harking back to Pakistan’s creation in 1947. Bound by traditional social, ethnic and economic ties, relations have nonetheless been volatile and have often descended into armed conflict.

Over the last few months, the two have occasionally skirmished along their winding, porous frontier as tension has escalated. The latest confrontation is by far the most serious.

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