Curfew clamped in Wana after firing incident

WANA: A 120-member Amn Committee of the Ahmadzai Wazir tribe made efforts on Monday to defuse tension in the wake of the firing incident on Sunday in which two activists of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) were killed and 40 others sustained injuries.

Also, curfew was enforced in Wana following the firing incident to prevent any further violence in the main city of South Waziristan.

Political Agent of South Waziristan, Suhail Khan had convened the jirga that included leading tribal elders such as Malik Bismillah Khan Wazir, Malik Ajmal Khan Kakakhel Wazir, Malik Jamil Khan Wazir Tojakhel, Malik Shehryar Tojakhel, Malik Saeedullah Darakhel, Riaz Mohammad, Malik Sangeen, Malik Maulana Taj Mohammad Wazir, Maulana Sultan Wazir, Maulana Mohammad Alam Kakakhel, Malik Saeedullah Wazir Ghulamkhel and others.

The jirga made various suggestions to defuse tension between the local Taliban militants, who are part of the so-called Peace Committee, and the PTM. The jirga members approached both the groups in a bid to solve the issue through negotiations.

Meanwhile, local people in Speen area in Wana and the PTM activists ransacked the office of the Taliban-led Peace Committee.

They set on fire a car, a motorcycle and furniture to vent their anger following the killing of two PTM activists in the firing incident in Wana.

Two people were killed and 40 others sustained injuries when the local Taliban members attacked the PTM activists in Wana. They had gathered at the filling station of Ali Wazir, one of the founding leaders of the PTM belonging to South Waziristan.

Ali Wazir, who was present at the filling station at the time of the firing, escaped unhurt.

The local Taliban, reportedly led by one Ainullah, had threatened the PTM supporters and sympathisers to stop wearing the red and black patterned Mazari cap, also known as “Pashteen cap” named after the PTM founder Manzoor Ahmad Pashteen or get ready to face the consequences.

There had been conflicting reports about the casualties with Pashteen claiming seven PTM members had been killed. However, the identity of even the two persons reportedly killed on Sunday hasn’t been established yet. The security forces intervened on Sunday to prevent further clashes in Rustam Bazaar in Wana and other localities.