2 killed, 4 injured in S Waziristan land dispute

WANA: Two persons were killed and four others sustained serious injuries in clashes between the Zalikhel and Dotani tribes over a piece of land in Karkanra area in Wana tehsil in South Waziristan tribal district on Saturday.

District Police Officer Shaukat Ali said that armed men of Zalikhel and Dotani tribes, the sub-tribes of Ahmadzai Wazir, had taken positions on the mountain tops and homes and were using light weapons against each other from last night.

He said that two persons, one each from Zalikhel and Dotani tribes, were killed and four others sustained injuries from both the tribes.

According to Deputy Commissioner Khalid Iqbal Khattak, a jirga of elders of Sulemankhel had been sent to the Karkanra area to effect a ceasefire between the infighting tribes.

However, the local elders said that the jirga had returned without achieving the desired results to halt the ongoing clashes in the area.

Meanwhile, the office-bearers of all political parties, including Pakistan People’s Party, Awami National Party, Jamaat-e-Islami, Jamiat Ulem-e-Islam, rights organization Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement, in an emergency press conference held the incumbent government and district administration responsible for fomenting the clashes in Karkanra area.

They said that both the tribes had presented the documents of ownership of land of the time when British ruled this part of the country.

However, they said the officials of district administration were not accepting the documents to settle the land dispute once and for all.

An elder Ayaz Wazir threatened that workers and activists of all the political parties would launch a protest movement against the government if it did not settle the dispute today.