Pakistan announces truce between Sunnis and Shiites after days of bloody hostilities
Afp
La Jornada Newspaper
Monday, November 25, 2024, p. 26
Peshawar. Pakistani authorities yesterday announced a seven-day truce after several days of clashes between Sunnis and Shiites in northwest Pakistan, which left at least 82 dead and 156 injured.
Pakistan is a Sunni-majority country, but the Kurram district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, near the border with Afghanistan, is home to a large Shiite population and the communities have clashed for decades.
Both sides agreed to a seven-day ceasefire, during which they will also exchange prisoners and return bodies to each other.declared Muhammad Ali Saif, spokesman for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial government.
Clashes broke out on Thursday when a dozen men fired at buses carrying Shiites.
On Friday and Saturday, Shiites carried out reprisals in Sunni neighborhoods, residents and local authorities said.
Among the dead, 66 are Shiites and 16 Sunnisdeclared an official who asked not to disclose his name.
Around 300 families fled on Saturday as small and heavy weapons shooting continued overnight, although no new casualties were reported.
Popular mobilization in favor of Imran Khan
In this context, at least 350 people were arrested after the start of a new popular caravan organized to demand the release of the great opposition leader and former prime minister, Imran Jan (2018-22).
He convoy is approaching the country’s capital, Islamabad, led by Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, and the chief minister of the state of Khyber Pashtunjua and a leading figure in former president Ali Amin Gandapur’s party.
This new protest is becoming the largest since the current Prime Minister, Shebhaz Sharif, took power in February.
Jan faces a multitude of cases (more than 150) for corruption and inciting violence during his time in power. Each time a court has released him, the government has resorted to another investigation to keep him behind bars, in a cycle that has now lasted more than a year.