PARACHINAR, Nov 16: At least 10 people were killed and over 30 injured in fierce clashes between two groups in Parachinar, headquarters of the Kurram Agency, on Friday.
The administration has imposed a curfew and called out army units to assist the political authorities in quelling the disturbance, officials said.
There are reports of tension from other parts of Kurram where 150 people were killed and some 300 injured in clashes in April this year.
Doctors said that two bodies and 30 wounded people had been taken to the agency headquarters hospital.
The town reverberated with explosions of mortar shells and rockets. There is no power supply in the area.
Witnesses said that low-intensity explosions took place in the town soon after Friday prayers, after which rival groups started firing on each other’s positions.
They said that hand-grenades were hurled on passersby in the main bazaar. This was followed by intense firing.
Local people said the exact number of dead and wounded could not be ascertained because of the heavy exchange of fire.
Tension gripped the area when two people were attacked in Parachinar city on Thursday, following which shops and markets were partially closed. Paramilitary and Levy forces were deployed in sensitive locations, including places of worship in the town.
Despite the presence of paramilitary personnel, warring factions were pounding each other’s positions.
According to reports, army and paramilitary forces were trying to work out a truce and were making announcements asking rival groups to stop fighting.
Some people, however, blamed paramilitary personnel for creating trouble and said that scouts who took positions in the city early in the morning had opened fire. “It was all a pre-planned attack and people expected this turmoil,” said an elder of the area.
