The tribal clashes that have been going on for the past seven days in different areas of Kurram district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and left 49 dead and over 200 injured have come to a halt, the Deputy Commissioner (DC) said on Tuesday.
According to the police and the district administration, the armed clashes between the Boshehra and Maleekhel tribes started on the evening of July 24. Similar tribal clashes erupted in the region last year as well, leading to sporadic violence that claimed 25 lives.
Despite recent efforts by a jirga of elders from Hangu and Orakzai districts to secure a ceasefire this time, fighting has continued and both sides have resorted to using heavy weapons to target each other’s positions. Soon hostilities spread to other areas including Peewar, Tangi, Balishkhel, Khaar Kalay, Maqbal, Kunj Alizai, Para Chamkani and Karman.
“Both tribes have agreed to a ceasefire and the clashes have been stopped since last night,” Kurram DC Javedullah Mehsud told Dawn.com.
“The parties were forced to clear the bunkers [and] security forces were deployed there, while no firing was reported at five locations in Kurram district,” he said.
He added that a ceasefire brokered by jirga members on Sunday had been “largely” respected, but fighting had resumed on Monday.
The doctor of the hospital’s district directorate, Dr. Mir Hassan Jan, said the killing of another 14 people on Monday took the death toll to 49. He disclosed that 210 people were injured as a result of the clashes, of which at least 12 were injured. critically injured people taken to Peshawar for treatment.
After Monday’s ceasefire, further efforts are underway to maintain peace in the region, Mehsud said, adding that a grand jirga, Kohat’s General Officer Commanding (GOC) 9 Infantry Division and Deputy Inspector General and Commissioner of Kohat’s division were present in Parachinar. city for peace efforts.
District Police Officer (DPO) Nisar Ahmed Khan also said that security forces have been deployed at fighting positions, adding that they will remain there until the situation returns to normal.
Giving further details, Khan said that while business activities had started to resume, major arteries and schools across Kurram district were still closed.
“Mobile data services have been suspended while call services are active,” the DPO said.
Mir Afzal Khan, a local social worker, said the main Parachinar road was closed to traffic due to the conflict, disrupting the supply of food and other items.
“The closure of the main road is causing losses of crores of rupees to farmers and traders,” he claimed, adding that the area was also facing shortage of food, medicine and other goods.
Rights group expresses concern, KP Chief Minister takes note
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) also expressed its deep concern over the “significant loss of life in Parachinar, Kurram, where rival tribes have been engaged in a violent land dispute fueling sectarian conflict for several days”.
“The violence has taken a heavy toll on ordinary citizens, whose freedom of movement and access to food and medical supplies have been restricted,” it said in a statement on Monday.
She called on the KP government to “ensure that the ceasefire mediation holds”.
“All disputes, whether over land or arising out of sectarian conflict, must be resolved peacefully through negotiations convened by the KP government with all stakeholders represented,” it said.
On his part, KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur noted “inter-party clashes and loss of precious lives over a property dispute” in Kurram, the KP Information Department said on July 27.
“The district administration and the police should play an effective role in truce between the parties and no one should be allowed to take the law into their hands and destroy peace in the area,” Gandapur said in a statement.
“The parties should sit and resolve the dispute through jirga as per tribal traditions,” the chief minister said. He expressed his condolences to the bereaved families and prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured.
