PESHAWAR / KURRAM: Khyber Pakh­tunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur has ordered security for­ces to carry out indiscriminate action against ‘militants’ in Kurram district, where violence has killed around 100 people.

The chief minister visited the neighbouring district of Kohat on Saturday and attended the meeting of a grand jirga constituted by the provincial government to address the violence in Kurram district.

The grand jirga took place amid ongoing violent clashes, which started last week when a convoy of passenger vehicles came under attack in Lower Kurram, killing more than 40 people.

Since then, reprisal att­acks and intermittent firing have resulted in the death of around 57 more people despite a ceasefire agreement.

Efforts for ‘complete peace’

Kurram Deputy Comm­issioner Javed Mehsood said negotiations were under way for an effective ceasefire among the groups, and contingents of security forces and police were dispatched to the area.

He said cellular network and internet services, which were shut down when violent clashes broke out last week, had resumed.

On Saturday, tenuous peace returned to the district as local administration managed to vacate most of the bunkers used by warring sides to attack each other.

The trenches were taken over by police and no firing incident took place in the Bagan and Alizai areas of Lower Kurram.

However, sporadic incidents of violence were reported from Maqbal and Kanj Alikhel areas in Upper Kurram, besides Khar Kalay, Morghy Cheena, Balesh Khel and Sangeena in Lower Kurram. The fresh clashes left one person injured.

The chief minister has ordered security forces to dismantle the bunkers and requested the federal government to deploy additional platoons of paramilitary Frontier Constabulary to maintain peace, said a statement released by Mr Gandapur’s office. He said security forces were deployed in the area to restore peace and ordered them to treat any individual disrupting peace as militants.

Senior officials briefed the chief minister about the law and order situation, the ceasefire agreement and the government’s efforts to ensure lasting peace, the statement added.

The CM directed the officials to confiscate heavy weapons from locals and temporarily collect arms from residents of areas bordering Afghanistan. He said security forces, police and civil administration were making coordinated efforts to restore peace in the district.

The chief minister also directed the grand jirga to remain active in the area until complete peace was restored, assuring of full support from the provincial government. Mr Gandapur called upon locals to identify militants and urged tribal elders to play their role in fostering harmony between rival groups.

“Anyone who takes up arms will be treated as a terrorist, and their fate will be that of a terrorist,” the chief minister warned and assured that funds would be released on a priority basis for the temporary displaced families whose “dignified” return to their homes would be ensured.

The chief minister stressed that violence and conflict won’t solve any problem, highlighting the importance of dialogue and negotiations in resolving disputes.

“In line with [Pakhtun] traditions, we are making every effort to resolve this issue peacefully through a jirga,” the statement quoted Mr Gandapur as saying.

He urged the warring parties to cooperate with the administration and jirga to ensure sustainable peace, which was “in the best interest of the region and the government”.

National Assembly members Shehryar Khan Afridi, Hamid Hussain, and Yousuf Khan attended the jirga along with provincial ministers / legislators Aftab Alam Khan Afri­­di and Pakhtoon Yar Khan, CM adviser Bar­ris­ter Muhammad Ali Saif. MPA Shafi Jan, Chief Secretary Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry and KP police chief Akhtar Hayat Khan Ganda­pur and other officials.

Published in Dawn, December 1st, 2024