NORTH WAZIRISTAN: Two tribal elders were shot dead apparently in an act of targeted killing in Miramshah here on Wednesday, police said.

Residents said that Malik Sahib Rehman and Malik Khairullah were riding a motorcycle on the outskirts of the town when gunmen opened fire at them from a car. They said the firing incident took place near Sargardan Chowk on Datakhel Road. Both people died on the spot. The attackers fled after the attack.

The police brought their bodies to the district headquarters hospital in Miramshah. Later, the bodies were handed over to legal heirs after postmortem. Sources said that Malik Sahib Rehman had survived several assassination attempts in the past.

Earlier, a dispute over the ownership of Khasadari (a loose security force in erstwhile Fata) left four people dead and another one injured in South Waziristan tribal district on Tuesday night.

Deputy superintendent police Sararogha police station Sagheer Ahmad Gillani said on Wednesday that the firing incident took place in Shabozai area. He said that transfer of Khasadari among cousins resulted in armed clash which claimed four lives.

The police official said that a case had been registered.

The Khasaddar force was raised for fulfilling collective and territorial responsibilities. Khasadari has something of a hereditary right — an asset, which can be bought, sold or transferred among inhabitants of respective tribes or sub-tribes.

The force was integrated with the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police after Fata merger with the province.

Published in Dawn, July 29th, 2021