25.11.2024 07:24
548
82 people were killed in three days of Shia-Sunni conflict in Pakistan
As a result of inter-sectarian and tribal clashes in northwestern Pakistan, 82 people were killed and 156 injured in three days, AFP reported.
"Of those killed, 16 are Sunni Muslims, 66 are Shiites," the administration of Kurram district in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province reported on Sunday.
Most of Pakistan's 240 million people are Sunni Muslims, but there is a large Shia community in the country's northwest bordering Afghanistan. Inter-religious conflicts have been frequent in this region for ten years.
Last Thursday, 43 people were killed when unknown criminals attacked a convoy of Shiite pilgrims under police protection. Local residents are angry that the army and police have failed to establish security in the region, despite numerous promises from the government.
"Our priority today is to establish a ceasefire between the warring parties. If this is achieved, we will be able to identify the causes of the conflict and work on them," regional justice minister Aftab Alam Afridi said on Sunday.
