In a report issued on Monday, a UN-appointed inquiry team said the conflict had become "increasingly sectarian... radicalised and militarised", according to AFP news agency.

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President Enrique Pena Nieto, who took office on 1 December, is aiming to create a new national militarised force to take over policing duties from the military, although there is, as yet, no timescale for this.

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Afghanistan now wants to improve relations with Pakistan, but because the border has become militarised, Kabul will have its work cut out to avoid the sort of long-term skirmishes, incursions and terror attacks that are a feature of the disputed frontier that Pakistan shares with India in Kashmir.

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