Bloodshed in Kurram: ANP to observe black day tomorrow

PESHAWAR: Condemning bloodshed in Kurram tribal district and deteriorating law and order in other parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Awami National Party (ANP) on Saturday announced to observe black day on November 25.

In a statement, ANP provincial president Mian Iftikhar Hussain condemned the violent clashes in Kurram and said the government had failed to protect innocent people and stop the ongoing clashes and violence in the volatile Kurram district.

“The ANP will observe black day on November 25 in the whole province in order to show solidarity and sympathy with the affected families. We also want the provincial government to con­- ­cen­trate on the deteriorating law and order situation in Kurram and other southern districts of the province,” the ANP leader said.

He asked the party workers and general public to hold rallies in front of the press clubs in all divisional headquarters at 2.00pm on November 25.

The ANP leader said after the firing incident on passenger vans in Kurram two days ago, the law and order in parts of the tribal district had deteriorated while the provincial government was engaged in its politics and protests instead of realising the gravity of the situation.

The ANP leader also asked the local elders and religious scholars from both sides to play their role in restoring peace. “Peace and reconciliation are the only solution to any conflict and the local elders and district administration must play their role to maintain law and order in the district,” he said.

He added that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government had deliberately ignored the prevailing insecurity in the entire southern districts of the province.

Mian Iftikhar said that the ANP had opposed violence, militancy and unrest on the Pakhtun soil in the past and would continue to raise its voice for permanent peace and stability in the region.