The clashes began when JuA fighters were allegedly asked to hand over their weapons and comply with the directives of TTP commanders.
A photo of a TTP member. PHOTO: ARCHIVE
PESHAWAR:
According to sources, more than a dozen terrorists were killed in intense clashes between the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and its breakaway faction, TTP-Jamaatul Ahrar (JuA), as tensions rose between commanders of the two groups in the Kurram tribal district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Deadly fighting in the Manato area of Central Kurram reportedly broke out following the TTP Central Shura’s decision to take disciplinary action against certain commanders of the JuA faction.
Sources said the clashes began when JuA fighters were allegedly asked to hand over their weapons or comply with directives issued by local TTP commanders.
Infighting is believed to have left 19 JuA fighters dead, while three TTP members were also killed, sources claimed.
Sharing more details, sources claimed that a jirga had been called to defuse rising tensions and resolve the dispute. However, the situation worsened when gunfire broke out between the two factions during the tribal assembly itself.
Meanwhile, the JuA has vowed to avenge the killings and has circulated images of its slain members on social media, according to sources.
In another development, security sources said that during a recent military operation in Shawal and Spinwam areas of North Waziristan, a senior terrorist commander identified as Jan Mir alias Tor Saqib was killed along with around 30 other terrorists.
