Officials said that at least 32 people have been killed and dozens wounded in renewed fighting between Sunni and Shia Muslim groups in northwestern Pakistan, reports agencies.
The clash erupted on Saturday at Kurram, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, just a day after another deadly sectarian attack on a convoy in the same area killed dozens of people.
On condition of anonymity, a senior administrative official said, “The clash claimed 32 lives including 14 Sunni and 18 Shia Muslims and another 47 were wounded.”
“Armed group in Bagan and Bacha Kot torched shops, houses and government property,” he added.
However, an intense gunfire was continuing between the Alizai and Bagan tribes in the Lower Kurram area.
“Educational institutions in Kurram are closed due to the severe tension. Both sides are targeting each other with heavy and automatic weapons,” the officer said.
Another Pakistani police official confirmed the matter to AP saying, putting the death toll at 33 and the injuries at 25.
Videos as well as images posted on social media showed a market engulfed by fire and orange flames piercing the night sky. Gunfire can also be heard.
Following the incident, a curfew was imposed in the area and mobile services have been suspended in the area “to curb the clashes”.
Escalating violence between Sunni and Shia Muslims in the mountainous Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan has killed about 150 people in recent months.
On Thursday, gunmen opened fire on two separate convoys of Shia Muslims travelling with police escorts in Kurram, killing more than 40. At least 11 others were wounded.
A group of Shia Muslims then on Friday evening launched an attack targeting Sunni locations, including the Bagan bazaar, in the Kurram district, once a semi-autonomous region, where sectarian violence has resulted in the deaths of hundreds over the years.
“After firing, they set the entire market ablaze and entered nearby homes, pouring petrol and setting them on fire. Initial reports suggest over 300 shops and more than 100 houses have been burned,” a senior police officer stationed in Kurram told AFP.
He said local Sunni “also fired back at the attackers”.
Javedullah Mehsud, a senior official in Kurram, told the AP there were “efforts to restore peace … [through] the deployment of security forces” and with the help of “local elders”.
Shia Muslims make up about 15 percent of the 240 million people in Sunni-majority Pakistan, which has a history of sectarian animosity between the communities.
Although the two groups generally live together peacefully, tensions remain, especially in Kurram.
Bd-Pratidin English/ Afsar Munna
