Following deadly clashes between Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a breakaway faction of the group, in the Kurram region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, at least 22 militants were killed. According to reports, 19 members of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar and 3 members of the TTP lost their lives in the fighting.
The Express Tribune newspaper reported on Friday that tensions escalated after the central council of the TTP decided to take disciplinary action against certain Jamaat-ul-Ahrar commanders and demanded that the faction surrender its weapons. The dispute eventually led to an exchange of gunfire between the two sides.
According to local sources, a tribal jirga had been convened in the area to contain the tensions, but instead of easing the crisis, the meeting resulted in armed clashes and exchanges of fire between the factions.
Following the incident, Jamaat-ul-Ahrar announced that it intends to avenge the killing of its members. The group was formed in 2014 as a splinter faction of the TTP and is listed as a “terrorist” organization by the United Nations.
In a separate development, security sources reported that a key militant commander named “Jan Mir,” also known as “Tor Saqib,” along with around 30 of his fighters, was killed during a recent military operation in the Shawal and Spinwam areas of North Waziristan.
According to the sources, he specialized in manufacturing explosives and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and was regarded as one of the well-known figures in the militant groups’ warfare tactics.
So far, the armed opposition groups have not commented on these reports.
Writer:Salima Aryaei
