PARACHINAR/ HANGU/ PESHAWAR: A targeted operation was launched in Lower Kurram on Sunday, with artillery fire hitting several targets, as the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government vowed to eliminate miscreants and restore peace to the violence-prone tribal region.
According to police sources, heavy contingents of police and security forces were deployed in Bagan, Ochat, Charkhel and Mandori. Artillery strikes were made at multiple locations, the sources added.
The operation was launched in the wake of several terror incidents, including an attack on the deputy commissioner’s convoy and other incidents, officials said.
For the past three and a half months, residents of Parachinar and Upper Kurram have faced hardships due to the closure of roads.
Kurram Deputy Commissioner Ashfaq Ahmed said camps had been set up in Thall and Hangu for people displaced by the operation.
Speaking at a press conference in Hangu, Commissioner, Kohat Division, Mutasim Billah Shah and Kohat Regional Police Officer Abbas Majeed Marwat clarified that the operation was not targeting the local population but was aimed at miscreants.
The senior officials said that no unilateral actions were being taken against anyone and that the operation was directed at miscreants who had infiltrated the local community.
Accompanied by Deputy Commissioner Gohar Zaman Wazir and Hangu DPO Muhammad Khalid, the senior officials provided the background for the targeted operation.
They recalled that a peace agreement had been reached in Kurram after significant efforts. Under the agreement, local committees had agreed to cooperate with the government in maintaining peace and order in the region. Both parties were keen on implementing the agreement, they said.
The officials explained that the first and second convoys had passed safely. For the third convoy, the local committee had pledged that 100 vehicles would pass, but miscreants attacked the convoy in an attempt to sabotage the peace agreement. They said the operation was going on against the miscreants who obstructed the convoy and disrupted the peace process.
The officials said efforts were being made to address the food shortages in Upper Kurram, adding over 20 families had relocated to Hangu, and their situation was being monitored.
“Facilities are being provided for displaced persons, and temporary arrangements have been made in Thall. Starting tomorrow morning, IDP camps will be set up in Hangu,” an official said.
Earlier, KP government spokesperson Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif, Chief Secretary Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry, Inspector General of Police Akhtar Hayat Khan and other officials attended a meeting on the Kurram situation. The meeting concluded with the decision to take action against miscreants.
Barrister Saif said the elements disturbing peace would be brought to justice. “Action against the miscreants in the affected areas has become inevitable. The peace agreement will be implemented under the law and Pakhtun traditions,” he said, according to a handout.
The KP government spokesperson added that security forces would assist the police and civil administration in action against the miscreants.
Barrister Saif noted that some miscreants had infiltrated peaceful communities, and the operation would separate these individuals from the rest of the population to protect the public.
He said the government had made the best alternative accommodation arrangements for the people of the affected areas. “The government urges both parties to the Kurram peace agreement to help law enforcement agencies identify the miscreants in their midst,” he said.
Barrister Saif mentioned that the KP government had been striving to restore peace in Kurram amicably for the past three months. “In a cowardly attack, the miscreants targeted the vehicle carrying the Kurram deputy commissioner, seriously injuring him. The miscreants are also attacking security forces personnel and relief convoys,” he pointed out.
He reaffirmed that the government had done its best to restore peace as per the peace agreement, adding that the people of Kurram wanted peace and wished to honour the peace agreement.
The spokesman urged the people to cooperate with security forces in the affected areas. “The government will soon eliminate the miscreants and restore peace,” he promised.