At least 30 people have been killed and 145 injured in Pakistan’s Kurram district over the past five days, with reports indicating that minority Shia Muslims are being targeted. However, Pakistani media reported that the violence stemmed from a land dispute between two families, which then escalated to other localities.
According to reports, exchanges of fire are underway in various areas, including Bushera, Dander, Balish Khel, Har Kaley, Piwar, and Shapina Shaga Gedo, with both sides using heavy weaponry.
A dozen missiles were reportedly fired at Parachinar town late last night.
Kurram, situated along Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, has a history of deadly conflicts among tribes, religious groups, and sectarian clashes.
Kurram District is one of the districts in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, and Parachinar is the district capital of Kurram. So, Kurram District includes Parachinar as its administrative center.
According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, nearly 700 Shia Muslims were killed and over 1,000 injured in more than 200 sectarian attacks in 2013 alone. Since the early 2000s, nearly 4,000 people have been killed and 6,800 injured in such violence.