Pakistan strikes seven-day ceasefire

25/11/2024 6:09

        A Pakistani
        government team mediated a seven-day ceasefire deal between
        rival sectarian groups on Sunday, halting days of clashes that
        have killed at least 68 people and injured dozens in the
        northwest of the country, one of the mediators said.
        
        The violence began when gunmen attacked convoys of civilian
        vehicles on Thursday, killing at least 40 people, mostly Shi'ite
        Muslims. That sparked retaliatory attacks against Sunni Muslim
        residents and there have been pitched battles between armed
        groups from both sides.
        
        Armed Shi'ite and Sunni Muslims have engaged in tribal and
        sectarian rivalry for decades over a land dispute in Kurram
        district near the Afghanistan border.
        
        "Both sides have agreed to a week-long ceasefire which is
        expected to be extended," Muhammad Ali Saif, a member of the
        mediation team, told Reuters by phone, adding that major clashes
        had already stopped.
        
        Saif, who is also the information minister of Khyber
        Pakhtunkhwa province, where Kurram is located, said both sides
        had also agreed to exchange prisoners, including women, and the
        bodies of those killed in the clashes.
        
        The prisoners and bodies will be exchanged with assistance
        from Pakistani paramilitary forces.
        
        The team flew into Parachinar, Kurram's main city, on
        Saturday and met Shi'ite and Sunni tribal leaders with the
        entire district under virtual curfew and armed groups roaming
        the streets in many villages.
        
        Saif said news of the ceasefire should also halt smaller
        skirmishes that had been reported in remote areas of the
        district.
        
        Another member of the mediation team, Akhtar Hayat Gandapur,
        the police chief of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said Shi'ite leaders
        were demanding the immediate arrest of those involved in
        attacking passenger vehicles, as well as compensation for the
        victims and safety assurances for travellers.
        
        The government is yet to identify or publicly name who the
        attackers were and no one has claimed responsibility.
        
        Two government sources, who asked to remain anonymous due to
        the sensitivity of the matter, said the death toll from
        retaliatory violence since Thursday's bus attacks had risen to
        at least 28, putting the overall toll at 68.
        
        Armed groups stormed into settlements inhabited by members
        of rival sects. Many homes have been evacuated, while markets
        and schools remain closed and several petrol stations were set
        alight, the officials said.
        
        They said they feared the death toll could rise as
        communications in the area are down, making information
        difficult to obtain.