Islamabad, Pakistan – After weeklong clashes between rival tribes in Pakistan’s district of Kurram, killing at least 46 people and injuring nearly 200, fighting has now halted, following a meeting between authorities and tribal elders.
A grand jirga, or a gathering of tribal elders, along with civilian and security officials, met in Parachinar, the main city in Kurram district. They held an hours-long meeting on Wednesday, after which a ceasefire was agreed upon by all stakeholders – until October 5.
Javedullah Mehsud, the deputy commissioner of Kurram, said there had been no casualties since then and that the government was confident of reaching a resolution to end the conflict.
“This is unfortunately an ongoing land dispute in the area that has led to fighting in the past as well, but we are confident that we can put an end to it this time,” Mehsud told Al Jazeera.
So where is Kurram, what happened there, how did things escalate and what’s next?
Where is Kurram?
Kurram, a mountainous area that shares a long border with Afghanistan in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, is home to about 700,000 people, of which more than 42 percent belong to the Shia community.
It is closer to Afghanistan’s capital Kabul than any major city in Pakistan but also borders Afghanistan’s Khost, Paktia, Logar and Nangarhar provinces, which are considered havens for anti-Shia armed groups such as ISIL (ISIS) and the Pakistan Taliban (TTP).
The area has a history of sectarian conflict between the Shia and the Sunni majority groups and has also faced militancy during the past decade, with frequent attacks by TTP and other armed groups targeting the Shia community.
According to local authorities and tribal leaders, the current conflict has its roots in a continuing land dispute between Shia-majority and Sunni-majority tribes. Another similar incident flared up last year, resulting in the deaths of at least 20 people.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) urged the government to help broker peace in the area where, it added, “violence has taken a heavy toll on ordinary citizens”.
“HRCP calls on the KP government to ensure that the ceasefire being brokered, holds. All disputes, whether over land or born of sectarian conflict, must be resolved peacefully through negotiations convened by the KP government with all stakeholders represented,” it said in a statement on July 29.
HRCP is deeply concerned at the significant loss of life in #Parachinar, Kurram, where rival tribes have engaged in a violent land dispute for several days, fueling sectarian conflict. The violence has taken a heavy toll on ordinary citizens, whose freedom of movement and access…
— Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (@HRCP87) July 29, 2024
What caused the latest clashes?
Mehmood Ali Jan, a member of the local peace committee and part of the jirga that held meetings this week, says that the conflict arose between Maleekhel, a Shia-majority tribe, and Madgi Kalay, a Sunni-majority tribe, over a tract of land in Boshehra village, situated 15km (9 miles) south of Parachinar city.
“It was a piece of agricultural land originally owned by the Shia tribe, which they had leased to the Sunni tribe for farming purposes. The lease was supposed to end this July, but when the time came, they refused to return the land, leading to fighting,” Jan told Al Jazeera.
Jan says that the local peace committee, which included members from both Shia and Sunni tribes, immediately tried to pacify the situation and asked the government to intervene. But the government, he says, was late to respond.
“The state was completely absent initially, leading to so much fighting. They did not interfere or send in forces or police despite the heavy presence of military and paramilitary personnel in the area,” Jan claimed.
Nisar Ahmad Khan, the district police officer, however, refutes the allegations of government inaction, saying that as soon as the fighting began, the state took swift action. He conceded, however, that a lack of manpower and the difficult terrain impeded the pace of the government’s response.
“We have limited capacity, and Kurram is a large, difficult area to access due to its mountainous terrain. Often, we had to hike for hours to reach places where fighting was taking place. Plus, due to the porous border with Afghanistan, many people have access to sophisticated weapons, making it even more difficult,” the police officer told Al Jazeera.
However, he categorically denied any involvement of TTP or any other armed group targeting the Shia community for their religious identity.
“The Boshehra village, where most of the fighting took place, has a strategic advantage for defenders, and anyone who tried to gain access was easily targeted. In this case, it was the Maleekhel tribe, which suffered more losses,” he said.
Why do such clashes keep happening?
Jan, the tribal elder, said even though a land dispute is at the heart of the current tensions, the region’s long history of sectarian strife allows “some elements” from both sides to use religion as a tool to mobilise.
“There have been major land dispute conflicts in the Kurram area between various tribes that have been ongoing since before the partition [of the Indian subcontinent in 1947]. Whenever anything triggers, it is conveniently given a sectarian angle, which is not the case,” he added.
There have been several incidents of significant sectarian violence in the last seven decades, but the most serious clash started in 2007, in which fighting between Shia and Sunni tribes lasted for almost four years. Several villages were set ablaze and thousands of people had to leave the region and seek shelter in other parts of the country.
Kurram, which was at the time part of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), was cut off from the rest of the country. In 2011, the Pakistani military, with the help of local tribal elders, finally managed to put an end to the fighting. Government data shows nearly 2,000 people were killed in the clashes, while more than 5,000 people were reported injured.
Khan, the police chief said that in many areas of the district, Shia and Sunni communities live together peacefully.
He cited the Ashura procession last month, marked to mourn the martyrdom of Husayn Ibn Ali al-Hussein, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad.
“We recently had the Ashura processions, which were taken out in different parts of Kurram. In many areas, Sunni tribes provided security for Shias who were mourning,” Khan said.
Mehsud, the deputy commissioner, said the government hoped to use the ceasefire to resolve the land dispute between the Maleekhel and Madgi Kalay tribes.
“We have our land dispute resolution mechanisms, and this ceasefire will allow us to bring all stakeholders together to try to end this permanently,” he said.
What is the current situation?
The fighting led to the closure of most roads leading to Kurram, and news reports emerged that even ambulances were targeted by unknown men.
Schools in Parachinar remained closed, while markets saw little activity. Jan, who is also a trader, said the closure of roads led to shortages of food and other necessary items, making it difficult for anyone needing to leave town in case of an emergency.
“After the ceasefire, we are hoping that life returns to normal. Right now, people are travelling in convoys only, with police and paramilitary forces guarding the roads leading out of Kurram,” he said.
Jan also added that the fighting resulted in the closure of the mobile data network, but fixed lines were working.
Mehsud, the government official, said that after the pause in fighting, there is an uneasy calm in the area but he expressed hope that normal activity in the region should resume soon.
“Naturally, there is an air of fear right now, and people are reluctant to step out of their homes. However, in the last two days, we have seen some semblance of normalcy, and things should improve,” he said.
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