KURRAM: A 125-member strong Pashtun Peace Jirga, comprising elders and religious scholars from Balochistan and merged tribal districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has said that it will continue talks with the elders of both sides in Kurram district.

On Thursday, the Jirga held talks with the elders of the two sides in Sadda and Parachinar areas of Kurram district to restore lasting peace in the troubled district.

According to sources, the jirga members held detailed discussions with the elders of the two sides in Kurram. Representatives of the two sides also participated in the jirga.

On this occasion, jirga members Mufti Kifayatullah, Naseer Khan Kokikhel, Amanullah Wazir, Hamid Sherani and others said that the purpose of forming jirga from the entire Pashtun block was to take steps to establish peace in the violence-hit Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

The jirga members said they did not come to Kurram district at anyone’s behest, rather they visited the area on their own initiative to quell the unrest.

According to official figures, 133 people have been killed and 200 injured in attacks on a passenger vehicles convoy and other incidents of firing in Kurram district over the past two weeks.

Published in Dawn, December 6th, 2024