A 7-day ceasefire has been agreed amid the ongoing conflict in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. After the efforts of the government both tribes fighting each other agreed to this. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has decided to form a high-level commission to resolve the dispute between the two communities.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government spokesperson Mohammad Ali Saif said that the government has spoken to the leaders of both communities. After which a seven-day truce and return of dead bodies and prisoners to each other was agreed upon.
The conflict began last week when a convoy of passenger vans was fired upon in clashes between Alizai (Shia) and Bagan (Sunni) tribes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Kurram district. All these vehicles were going in a convoy from Parchinar to Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
More than 64 people have lost their lives and hundreds have been injured so far in the three-day violence between the two communities. However, some media reports put the death toll at over 100.
More than half of Kurram's population is Shia Muslim The majority of the population in Pakistan are Sunni Muslims. According to the New York Times, half of the 7.85 million population of Kurram near the Afghanistan border are Shia Muslims. Because of this, communal tension between the two communities continues. Even on Friday, violence was more prevalent in areas of the district where Shia and Sunni communities live in close proximity.
A convoy of vehicles going to Peshawar was attacked. Photo- Social Media
The border dispute had become a haven for terrorists There has always been tension between Pakistan and Afghanistan over Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. This is why many terrorist groups use it as a haven. The main reason for the terrorist incidents happening here is the lack of mutual agreement between the two countries regarding the border area.
In fact, Pakistan and Afghanistan are separated by a border. It is called the Durand line. Pakistan considers it the boundary line, but the Taliban clearly says that Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa state is part of it. The Pakistani army has put up a barbed wire here.
After taking over Afghanistan, the Taliban asked Pakistan to vacate the area and tore down the fencing. Pakistan opposed it and deployed army there. After this, the Taliban blew up the Pakistani check post there.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
