t least 49 people lost their lives, and 226 were injured during clashes over a land dispute in Kurram district two weeks ago.

The clashes were triggered by an on-going land dispute between some Shia and Sunni families in the Upper Kurram sub-division.

Last year, the district administration and some local tribal elders had mediated between the two sides to settle the dispute over the ownership of 140 kanals of land. The jirga had decided that Sayd Akbar would get 35 kanals and the rest, 105 kanals, would go to Haji Gulab.

However, in July this year, the dispute resurfaced in Boshehra and Malikhel villages, situated 13 kilometers south of Parachinar city. Soon the two sides started using heavy weapons to target each other’s positions.

Later, the clash turned into a sectarian dispute and spread to other parts of Upper and Lower Kurram sub-divisions. Fighting was also reported from Peewar, Balish Khel, Khaar Kalay, Maqbal and Kunj Alizai.

The Thal Parachinar Road, which connects the valley to Hangu, Kohat and Peshawar was closed for traffic. To contain the unrest, the district administration suspended the internet service in the district.

The administration and tribal elders tried to persuade both sides to sit down for talks but initially, the efforts failed. When the situation deteriorated further, the provincial government intervened.

On July 26, Chief Minister Sardar Ali Amin Gandapur directed the district administration and the police to take immediate measures to end the clashes.

“No one should be allowed to take the law into their hands and disturb the peace in the valley. The district administration and the police should ensure the rule of law. Both sides should sit together and resolve land disputes through jirga according to tribal traditions,” the CM said in a message.

The Kohat division commissioner then arrived at Parachinar. After a series of talks with Shia and Sunni families and efforts of local members of the jirga, both sides agreed on a ceasefire. Currently, peace has been restored in the valley. However, it is feared that fighting can resume any time if the land dispute remains unresolved.

Later, the clash turned into a sectarian dispute. It spread to other parts of Upper and Lower Kurram sub-divisions. Fighting was also reported from Peewar, Balish Khel, Khaar Kalay, Maqbal and Kunj Alizai.

Kurram has a long history of deadly clashes that have claimed the lives of thousands of people. Thousands of people have also left the region due to the violence.

Talking to The News on Sunday, tribal elders from both sides agreed that there were similar land disputes in Sunni-majority and Shia-majority areas. “But most of those disputes remain disputes among individuals and do not turn into sectarian fighting. It is very unfortunate that the land disputes involving people from two sects should spread to the whole district,” a tribal elder from Kurram, who requested anonymity, said.

Currently, Kurram has eight long-running land disputes: the Boshehra-Malikhel dispute, Pewar-Gedo, Maqbul-Kunj Alizai, the Balish Khel-Para Chamkani, Bangash-Hamza Khel, Shorko Shamilat, Sada Shamilat and Paloseen Wazir-Tal dispute.

To resolve these land disputes, the provincial government constituted a commission comprising six members of the Revenue Board in 2023. The commission was mandated to demarcate boundaries in seven major land disputes and given six months for the task. In November 2023, it submitted its report to the government.

In March 2024, the provincial government issued another notification Implementation Commission Kurram, constituting an 11-member committee under the chairmanship of the Kohat commissioner. However, some of the tribal elders have reservations about the slow implementation of the recommendations.

The Revenue Department had launched the Land Registration in Merged Areas Activity project in 2021 with support from the US Agency for International Development.

The project envisions the establishment of accurate, transparent and secure land records based on Geographic Information System for the merged areas. In the first phase, the land settlement process will be completed in seven sub-divisions of the province.

The writer is a freelance multimedia journalist. He tweets @daudpasaney