Kurram tribesmen clash over land ownership.

KURRAM -- A clash over ownership of community land in Kurram tribal district has triggered fear among locals that it may lead to bloodshed if security forces do not intervene.

The clash between the residents of Para Chamkani and Balishkhel in Lower Kurram occurred when the latter started construction on what the locals claimed was Shamilat or community lands. The two groups have been using heavy weapons against each other.

Malik Safdar Ali, an elder from the Balishkhel, said that the residents of Para Chamkani had occupied hundreds of acres of their land and had been carrying out illegal construction on it. 'After a long legal battle, the court gave the people of Balishkhel ownership of the land. The court also issued orders to raze the illegal constrictions on the land,' he claimed.

But despite the court orders, he said, residents of Para Chamkani continued illegal constructions on the land. 'On the other hand, we were stopped and threatened by the Para Chamkani people when we went there today to build setups on our land. They fired at us, provoking us to...