Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Secretary Shahab Ali Shah said on Friday that as many as 48 “miscreants” allegedly involved in recent acts of violence and instability in Kurram district have been arrested so far in action against disruptive elements.

Since October last year, 189 people have died in various clashes, and a peace agreement was signed as a result of the government’s efforts to bring the situation under control. A total of nine convoys comprising 718 vehicles carrying essential goods have been sent to the area while attacks and ransacking of convoys have continued unabated.

On Monday, over 30 trucks carrying food supplies to Kurram were looted while 19 trucks were set on fire after the convoy came under an attack at the Bagan, Charkhel, Ochat and Mandori areas. Several people, including security personnel and drivers, lost their lives in the incident. At least 30 miscreants and facilitators were rounded up during an operation launched by the security forces in Lower Kurram on Thursday.

A statement issued today said the KP chief secretary and the inspector general of Police (IGP) visited Kohat to chair a high-level meeting on the situation in Kurram that ultimately decided that operations against terrorist elements involved in recent incidents would be further intensified.

“We have arrested 48 people involved in the recent incidents,” the chief secretary was quoted as saying.

Shah vowed that nobody would be allowed to disrupt law and order and that peace would be restored at all costs to improve the lives of the common people as peace and order were a priority for their prosperity.

“Strict action will also be taken against the facilitators of miscreants. Action will also be taken against those who cooperate with miscreants. Indiscriminate action will be taken against the enemies of peace and their facilitators. Those who shelter terrorists will also be brought to justice.

“No one will be allowed to challenge the writ of the state. A zero-tolerance policy will be adopted against the facilitators of miscreants. Some elements are enemies of the prosperity of the people of Kurram. Conspiratorial elements do not want the development of the people of Kurram and [we] will foil every conspiracy against the people of Kurram,” the chief secretary was quoted as saying.

Shah praised the efforts of the KP police, the Pakistan Army and other forces who “fought bravely” to maintain peace in the region. “The soldiers … are steadfast on every front and their sacrifices in the war against terrorism are unforgettable,” he stated.

After months of violence, a peace agreement was signed between the warring sides in Kurram on January 1. Despite a lull in fighting, the route connecting Parachinar with the rest of the province remained blocked.

As part of the peace agreement, the KP apex committee decided to dismantle all bunkers in the Kurram district in a bid to restore peace in the area. On Monday, the KP government said that over 150 bunkers were demolished in Kurram, with a deadline set for the demolition to be completed by March 23.

The KP government had also announced a fresh operation against militants in Kurram after five security officials were martyred in multiple attacks on Monday.

Given the situation, the KP government decided to launch another operation in the Mandori and Ochat areas to “clear them of miscreants”, the provincial government’s spokesperson, Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif, had said after the attack.

The decision to launch the action was taken in a late-night meeting chaired by KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur.