LANDI KOTAL (Khyber Agency), Dec 16: Six more people were killed as the fighting between rival religious groups in the Tirah valley of Khyber Agency intensified on Saturday.

Sources in the area told Dawn that activists of the Lashkar-i-Islam and the Ansaar-ul-Islam used heavy weapons against each other in the Ghari Qamar Khel locality.

Twenty houses were destroyed after being hit by artillery shells. The number of injured is said to be more than a dozen.

Names and affiliation of the dead and injured could not be ascertained. The sources said activists of the Ansaar-ul-Islam had pushed back their opponents from the Ghari Qamar Khel area.

The fighting has claimed 16 lives in four days.

A 13-member jirga of Bara elders left for Tirah on Saturday to help negotiate a ceasefire between the warring groups. The jirga, led by Senator Hamidullah Jan Afridi, has the support of the Khyber Agency political administration.

Local elders and residents have been criticising the local administration for failing to stop the bloodshed in Tirah.

Bara’s assistant political agent Attaur Rehman told Dawn that members of the jirga would hold talks with representatives of the two groups. He said if progress was made in the talks, the administration would arrange for sending more elders to the area.

The official dispelled an impression that the administration was not interested in bringing peace to the Tirah valey and hoped that the senator-led jirga would broker a peace deal.

The political administration of Bara also constituted on

Saturday another jirga to dispose of the property of Pir Saifur Rehman who was expelled from Bara following a jirga decision.

The property is in the protective custody of the local administration.

The assistant political of Bara said the decision to dispose of the property was taken after rumours of the Pir’s return to Bara.

The conflict between supporters of Pir Saifur Rehman and their opponents has claimed more than 200 lives in 10 months.