PESHAWAR:
Ten more militants were killed and six others injured in clashes between
two groups of the outlawed Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on Tuesday
in the Shaktoi area of South Waziristan Agency (SWA)
Taliban sources said that fighting between two militant factions started on Monday after militant leader Kasheed Mehsud, along with his four bodyguards, was gunned down by unknown armed men in Shaktoi.
According to sources, 10 militants were killed and six others injured in the fresh clashes between the fighters of the two groups. The injured militants were brought to hospitals in Mir Ali and Miranshah and were being treated for their bullet injuries.
The Taliban sources said the killing of Kasheed Mehsud had sparked the latest violence in the Taliban-controlled Shaktoi area of South Waziristan.Kasheed Mehsud, 35, was said to be the first militant commander killed for his anti-talks stance.
The Taliban said several militants in the TTP, including Kasheed Mehsud, were opposing the mechanism of talks with the government.Asmatullah Shaheen Bhittani, who was a close aide to the TTP founder Baitullah Mehsud, was the first militant commander killed for supporting negotiations with the government.
According to sources, both the militant factions had developed serious differences over the ongoing talks with the government that finally led to a heavy gunbattle between the two sides.TTP spokesman Shahidullah Shahid confirmed the fighting between the two militant factions but denied that it was due to differences over negotiations.
“It happens and sometime people of one group develop differences over certain issues. But I want to explain that the fighting between the two groups was not over the peace talks,” Shahidullah Shahid insisted.
The Taliban sources said that a delegation comprising members of the TTP Shura or council had been sent to Shaktoi to convince the two warring sides on a settlement.“The delegation has reached there and is trying to resolve the issue between the two sides. I hope they will stop killing each other on the request of Shura members,” a senior Taliban commander said on condition of anonymity.
Meanwhile, TTP spokesman Shahidullah Shahid claimed that people recently freed by the Pakistani security agencies were neither members of their network nor their names existed in the 800-member list of “civilian prisoners” delivered to the government.
He felt that it was disappointing as, according to him, the government had neither released their “non-combatant” prisoners nor arranged for them a “peace zone” in the tribal areas.“Instead of releasing our civilian prisoners, the government has been carrying out more operations and taking our people into custody. There is no positive signal coming from the government side and that’s very damaging for the peace process,” the TTP spokesman said.
AFP adds: Fresh clashes between two feuding factions of the TTP left 14 more people dead, security officials and militant sources said. A total of 34 people have so far been killed since the fighting broke out on Sunday in South Waziristan Agency (SWA) between the supporters of Khan Said Sajna and followers of Hakimullah Mehsud, they said.
Militant sources suggested that differences emerged after Sajna was rejected for the leadership of the TTP umbrella group, following the death of Hakimullah Mehsud. “At least 12 people have been killed in a firefight between the militant groups in the Shaktai area of South Waziristan. The fighting still goes on,” a security official told AFP in Miranshah, the main town in neighbouring North Waziristan.
In a separate incident, two militants from another faction, the Badar Mansur group, were killed when unknown attackers fired at a car in Miranshah on Monday night.A senior TTP commander said efforts were being made to resolve the differences between the Sajna and Hakimullah Mehsud groups but the former had refused to reach any agreement.
Taliban sources said that fighting between two militant factions started on Monday after militant leader Kasheed Mehsud, along with his four bodyguards, was gunned down by unknown armed men in Shaktoi.
According to sources, 10 militants were killed and six others injured in the fresh clashes between the fighters of the two groups. The injured militants were brought to hospitals in Mir Ali and Miranshah and were being treated for their bullet injuries.
The Taliban sources said the killing of Kasheed Mehsud had sparked the latest violence in the Taliban-controlled Shaktoi area of South Waziristan.Kasheed Mehsud, 35, was said to be the first militant commander killed for his anti-talks stance.
The Taliban said several militants in the TTP, including Kasheed Mehsud, were opposing the mechanism of talks with the government.Asmatullah Shaheen Bhittani, who was a close aide to the TTP founder Baitullah Mehsud, was the first militant commander killed for supporting negotiations with the government.
According to sources, both the militant factions had developed serious differences over the ongoing talks with the government that finally led to a heavy gunbattle between the two sides.TTP spokesman Shahidullah Shahid confirmed the fighting between the two militant factions but denied that it was due to differences over negotiations.
“It happens and sometime people of one group develop differences over certain issues. But I want to explain that the fighting between the two groups was not over the peace talks,” Shahidullah Shahid insisted.
The Taliban sources said that a delegation comprising members of the TTP Shura or council had been sent to Shaktoi to convince the two warring sides on a settlement.“The delegation has reached there and is trying to resolve the issue between the two sides. I hope they will stop killing each other on the request of Shura members,” a senior Taliban commander said on condition of anonymity.
Meanwhile, TTP spokesman Shahidullah Shahid claimed that people recently freed by the Pakistani security agencies were neither members of their network nor their names existed in the 800-member list of “civilian prisoners” delivered to the government.
He felt that it was disappointing as, according to him, the government had neither released their “non-combatant” prisoners nor arranged for them a “peace zone” in the tribal areas.“Instead of releasing our civilian prisoners, the government has been carrying out more operations and taking our people into custody. There is no positive signal coming from the government side and that’s very damaging for the peace process,” the TTP spokesman said.
AFP adds: Fresh clashes between two feuding factions of the TTP left 14 more people dead, security officials and militant sources said. A total of 34 people have so far been killed since the fighting broke out on Sunday in South Waziristan Agency (SWA) between the supporters of Khan Said Sajna and followers of Hakimullah Mehsud, they said.
Militant sources suggested that differences emerged after Sajna was rejected for the leadership of the TTP umbrella group, following the death of Hakimullah Mehsud. “At least 12 people have been killed in a firefight between the militant groups in the Shaktai area of South Waziristan. The fighting still goes on,” a security official told AFP in Miranshah, the main town in neighbouring North Waziristan.
In a separate incident, two militants from another faction, the Badar Mansur group, were killed when unknown attackers fired at a car in Miranshah on Monday night.A senior TTP commander said efforts were being made to resolve the differences between the Sajna and Hakimullah Mehsud groups but the former had refused to reach any agreement.
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