An exchange of gunfire erupted between the Afghan military and Pakistani border soldiers at the Torkham checkpoint on Wednesday, eyewitnesses told Sputnik.

According to eyewitnesses, clashes affected several thousand people as civilian were forced to leave their homes and flee the area.

The Torkham checkpoint is one of the three key trade and transit routes between Afghanistan and Pakistan, used by Islamabad to deliver its goods to Central Asia.

(With UNI inputs)