Kurram quagmire

Peace and normalcy continue to remain unattainable in the Kurram District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. After months of violent land and sectarian disputes, which led to the deaths of at least 130 individuals, the warring factions signed a peace agreement on January 1. Over four months on, and the agreement is still struggling to have the intended impact. The latest sign that things are not going as planned came on Tuesday, when traders in the district’s main city, Parachinar, observed a shutter-down strike against the months-long closure of the Parachinar-Thull road. This happens to be the only road leading to Kurram’s main city and, alarmingly, traders have even complained of having to pay large sums of money to have their trucks included in the aid convoys still travelling to the region. If these allegations are true, it is quite shocking that some would seemingly use the desperation of those stuck under a crisis to demand obscene sums. However, being part of an aid convoy is no guarantee of safety. At least seven people, including five security personnel, were killed back in February when an aid convoy heading for Parachinar came under attack, a little over a month after the peace agreement was signed. The KP government launched a new operation against militants in the area in the same month after multiple attacks on security forces and aid convoys, but this does not seem to have made the roads any safer.

The end result of the continuing instability is that the region remains deprived of essential goods. The impact on healthcare has been particularly bad, with the sick not able to get the medicines they need or travel to other cities for treatment. Aside from the health situation, fuel is now allegedly being sold for Rs700-Rs1,000 in the area, and there are no books available for its schools either. This is not the first time the region’s traders have protested the desperate situation they have been forced into. They held a sit-in for around nine days outside the Parachinar press club last month to demand the reopening of major roads. Clearly, their demands have not been met and do not even seem close to being met. Why exactly has it been so hard for the government to restore peace to the region?

For one, the outbreak of violence in 2024 is not the first bout of bloodshed that Kurram has experienced. Sectarian violence and land disputes have troubled the district for decades and peace agreements, like the one signed in January, are almost as common. Sadly, none have proven to be effective in the long run. Given the deep roots of the violence, it is unsurprising that the government has been unable to solve things in a few months. However, there are also more immediate factors that could explain the difficulty in restoring normalcy. Relations between the centre and KP have almost always been rocky but are particularly bad nowadays, caught up in the rift between the government and the PTI and its imprisoned chief. Then there is the overall terror resurgence in Pakistan following the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. The KP and federal governments might not be able to solve the long-term sectarian and land issues in Kurram in the immediate term. They can, however, put their differences aside and build a more cohesive relationship for the good of their people. Kurram needs peace – now.