A driver washes his face near a truck carrying NATO supplies at the Pakistani-Afghan border, in Chaman, Pakistan, Thursday, July 5, 2012. The first truck carrying supplies to American and NATO troops in Afghanistan has crossed the Pakistani border after a seven-month long closure of the supply routes by Pakistan ended earlier this week.CHAMAN, Pakistan – The first trucks carrying supplies to American and NATO troops in Afghanistan crossed the Pakistani border today after a seven-month closure of the supply routes ended earlier this week.
Pakistan closed the routes in retaliation for American airstrikes in November that killed 24 border troops. The decision Tuesday to reopen them, after the U.S. apologized for the killings, marked an easing of strains in the relationship in recent months. The Americans have said they did not intentionally target Pakistani forces, but Pakistan disputed that.
In the port city of Karachi, truckers were preparing for the trip. Thousands of trucks and tankers have been stuck at ports in Karachi waiting for the transit ban to be lifted as diplomatic wrangling dragged on.
“Today, almost after eight months, NATO supply has been started. I am taking NATO cargo to Peshawar where this cargo will be shifted to trailers taking the same to Kabul,” said driver Javed Iqbal.
The journey is a perilous one, as the Taliban and other militant groups have threatened to attack supply vehicles in Pakistani territory. Before the closure, hundreds of supply trucks, which travel in convoys, were targeted in different areas of the country.