Life in Kurram and Orakzai Agencies of FATA

Life in Kurram and Orakzai Agencies of FATA
Special Report

Courtesy

CENTER for RESEARCH
and SECURITY STUDIES ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN


Islamabad, May 20, 2010
Life in Kurram and Orakzai Agencies of FATA

Background:
Until 2006, there was nominal presence of Taliban in Kurram and Orakzai Agencies. However, with the formal launch of Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan [TTP] in December 2007, Chief Baitullah Mehsud, deputed his close aide Hakeemullah Mehsud to control Orakzai Agency. Under Hakeemullah’s leadership, the TTP entered Orakzai and the Taliban gradually established their writ on the entire area.
The Taliban entry into Kurram and Orakzai Agencies is a replica of three-phased tactic adopted by them on both sides of the Durand Line. In the first phase--persuasion phase--the TTP criticized the prevailing injustice in the area, and pushed for the greater agenda of caliphate, Jihad and martyrdom through peaceful assertions. During this phase, the TTP looked for local allies and also built their centres. The Taliban also verbally attacked the centuries old harmonious Shia-Sunni relations in Kurram and Orakzai Agencies. This phase also included target killing and kidnapping of Shias. Training camps established during this phase recruited a considerable number of young men for becoming fighters and suicide bombers. The TTP also started gathering revenues in form of coal commissions, narcotics, extortions and kidnapping for ransom.
In the second phase--contamination phase--the Taliban used intimidations, threats and violence to isolate the area from rest of the country and to break down the tribal culture. Music and barbers’ shops were attacked and movements of people, particularly women, was restricted. Girls education was banned. Attacks on shias increased and intimidation of Sikhs began. Under the leadership of Hakeemullah Mehsud in the area, a considerable number of youth began developing fighting militias. This phase of contamination led to occupation.
In the third phase, the TTP began to establish a parallel system in the area. A different judicial and administration system and a new social code were imposed on people of the area. This process of occupation angered the largest tribe, Ali Khel. The tribe thus decided to resist the occupation.


Current Scenario:
Kurram and Orakzai, the coldest agencies vis-à-vis climate have become the hottest ones vis-à-vis day to day violence and turbulence. In Kurram Agency, however, the army has cleared 40 percent area, and we can say that 80 percent area has become peaceful. The remaining 20 percent, however, still remains under the Taliban control. There are Shias spreading over 60 percent of the area.
The last public resistance in Kurram was headed by Mumtaz Mullah who was supported by 120 families--almost 20,000 people--in Zawa town. Mumtaz Mullah formed a lashkar which provided security shell to the town against Noor Jamal known as Mullah Tofan (storm). The lashkar resisted Tofan’s men hardly for a month as Zawa town was besieged by the Taliban and the people had to suffer due to shortage of daily use commodities. A vehicle carrying 18 people was hijacked by the Taliban. Two among the captives were slaughtered and the rest were put for ransom of Rs. 1500,000 for each. Meanwhile, the villagers started to vacate the town leaving behind their household luggage, cattle and other essentials of life.
The Taliban control the central Kurram and the army has not yet moved to that area. However, the army has secured the G.T road upto Thall and North Waziristan. The Shia population which remains under strict restrictions has been quarantined by the rest of Pakistan for last three years. A student at Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad, belonging to Shia area in Kurram, said that he did not meet his family for the the last three years. He said, “There is no way to go to my home. Earlier, I would use the route Peshawar-Kabul-Paktia-Parachinar but it has also become dangerous now because Taliban outfits have become stronger in Paktia as well.” For last four months, the Shia people have been traveling to Peshawar via Hangu-Kohat road under the umbrella of army convoys. However, this road has again become risky after the targeted suicide attack on a convoy at Thall (Hangu).
The Sunni population in the agency, which has been made secured by the army, is confronted with another sort of dilemma. They don’t speak against the Taliban believing that it would prove fatal for them if someone among the IDPs [Internally Displaced Persons] contacts the Taliban and informs them about it. The Taliban in Kurram are using mobile phone services of the companies like Mobilink, Ufone and Telenor. They can easily communicate with the people living in the secured area.


Religious Divide and Administrative Setup:






Administrative Division
Upper Kurram
Central Kurram
Lower Kurram









Turi
Orakzai
Bangash
Mangal
Ghalgi
Kharota
Hazara
Major Tribes of Kurram Agency:
















Basic Facts and Figures:
Official name Kurram Agency
Locally called Kuar-ma
Area 3.380 square kilometers
Population 50,0000
Headquarter Parachinar
Sub headquarter Sadda
Weather Snow, rain and fog weather in January and February, a bit hot weather in June & July and moderate in rest of the months
Language Pashto (100%)














Note: Kurram Agency is the area, closest to Kabul, almost 120 km.

The Conflict:
Unlike other tribal agencies, Kurram Agency is known for sectarian conflict between Shia and Sunni tribes. So far, five-six major clashes in the Agency (1961, 1983, 1988, 1996, 2007 and 2009) have resulted into the deaths of over 5000 people belonging to both the sects. The genesis and orientation of the conflict has been commonly understood as the blasphemous and offensive use of language or planned/unplanned actions committed by the perpetrators of one sect against the other.
Two important regional developments have inspired Shia and Sunni population of Kurram valley in imbalanced way. These are:

1. Iranian Revolution 1979, which inspired and radicalized Shia of Kurram Agency. Arif Husseni, a Shia leader of Kurram Agency, remained a close companion of Khomeini and he spent his time in Iraq with Khomeini when he was in exile.

2. Soviet-Afghan War 1979, which indoctrinated the Sunni populace as many of them were directly participating in Afghan Jihad. Kurram was used as a launching pad for jihad in Afghanistan as it offers the shortest distance to Kabul.


New Dimension of Conflict:
In 2007, Pakistani Taliban, predominantly the militants of Tehrik-e-Taliban (TTP), got involved into the matrix. Most of the surrendered and abducted security personnel who belonged to Shia sect were brutally slaughtered by Taliban in many parts of FATA and the NWFP. In 2007 and 2008, the Shia community in Parachinar received many bodies beheaded by the TTP militants. In reaction, a task force was formed by the Shias of Parachinar to protect themselves from the Taliban.
The Taliban and Shia task force entered into a new phase of violence, and the general populace supported and joined hands with their respective warring parties of the conflict.
In 2008, thousands of people from both the sects were directly involved in fighting and killing one another with heavy weapons. Interior Minister Rehman Malik warned the warring parties to withdraw from the fight, otherwise they would face dire consequences for it. However, owing to the government’s passive response, the fight continued for two weeks after the deadline.
The Taliban alleged the Shia community of Parachinar of impeding their cross border infiltration into Afghanistan. They also accused the Shias of having developed an understanding with the Afghan government and NATO forces against them.
Orakzai Agency:
The tribal area now forming Orakzai agency was previously part of Frontier Region Kohat district until Novemebr 30, 1973. Biland Khel, a small pocket measuring about 6.5 square kilometers is also part of the agency and lies few kilometres off Thall, bordering North Waziristan and Kurram agencies.
Interestingly, Biland Khel doesn’t touch the main land of Orakzai Agency and the people living in Biland Khel are Wazir. Biland Khel was included in Orakzai Agency due to some administrative problems.
Operation in Orakzai Agency:
The military operation continues in yellow spot area--lower Orakzai agency. It is one of the beautiful and tough areas, as the terrain is hilly and forestry. The army is using gunship helicopters and ground forces as well. The lower Orakzai has plenty of coal mines and the militants have set up their hideouts there.

Orakzai is the only agency that doesn’t share boundary with Afghanistan. It is the last Taliban-hit agency of FATA [Federally Administered Tribal Areas]. So far, the army has not penetrated deep into the agency. The army has been deployed along a narrow strip adjacent to Hangu, and it has secured the GT road leading to Thall, Kurram Agency and North Waziristan.

Army helicopters hit targets in both Kurram and Orakzai agencies. Owing to frequent shelling and fear of the Taliban, as many as 90 percent people of Orakzai agency have migrated to other cities mainly Hangu. Local estimates put the number of IDPs over 100,000; however, there are only 18 families residing in IDP camp in Hangu. The others are living either on rent or with their relatives in nearby villages of Hangu. A local of Hangu said that he had eight families from Orakzai agency at his home, and they had also brought 29 cows along with them.

Suicide attack on IDPs:

On April 17, 2010, two suicide attacks carried out at a registration centre for the IDPs in Kacha Pakha area of Kohat, killed 41 people. The IDPs were standing in a queue at the centre when the first suicide bomber blew himself up. A second suicide bomber struck minutes later when people rushed to the spot to help the injured. Lashkar-e-Jhangvi al Alami, a militant outfit, claimed responsibility for the attacks. The sectarian element in this attack cannot be ruled out as most of the IDPs at the camp belonged to Manikhel and Bar Mohammadkhel tribes, which are Shia.

Kacha Pakha, a largely Shia area in Kohat, was hit by the militants for the second time in recent months. In September 2009, a suicide bomber had killed 33 people, and the same group claimed responsibility for the attack. An IDP, Rafil Hussain, who was injured in the latest attack, had lost his brother in the last year attack. The Shia tribes of Orakzai are being targeted because they are fully supporting the ongoing army operation against the Taliban.

Tribal Sikhs:

There are about 150 Sikh families living in the two agencies for centuries. They have their properties and business there. They have fully adopted the Pashtun culture—observance of Hijab [veil], keeping weapons with them, dancing etc.. Many Sikhs run their business in partnership with other Muslim tribesmen.

Owing to the Taliban threat, most of the Sikh community members have vacated both the agencies and migrated to Punjab, particularly Hassan Abdal. The Taliban had targeted some Sikhs in the past, and recently, two Sikhs were slaughtered by the Taliban in Orakzai Agency for allegedly conspiring against the Taliban.

Profile of Tufan Mullah:

· Real name Noor Jamal; Tufan -- nickname or codename -- used in wireless communications.
· Belongs to Mamozai sub-tribe of Orakzai.
· Head of Taliban in both Kurram and Orakzai agencies.
· Got religious education from seminaries in Faisalabad and Talagang districts of Punjab; also studied in Panjpir, Swabi.
· Has links with Punjabi Taliban.
· Served as an Imam [prayer leader] in a Hujra of local Malik [elder] in Kurram Agency for Rs. 2000 per month.
· Got military training in Kandahar in 2005-06.
· Slaughtered more than fifty people with his own hands.
· Has two wives, and four sons and two daughters.

Ideology:

Tufan Mullah belongs to Panjpir school of thought, which is close to Salfi and Wahabi brand of Islam. Maulana Mohammad Tahir was the first leader of Panjpiris and he has established a Madarssa in Swabi. They follow Deobandi Islam but have some theological differences with Deobandi Ulema. Panjpirs also strongly oppose to Jamiat Ulema-e Islam [JUI], a strong political party of Deobandi Ulema.

Opposition to TTP in Kurram:

Some prominent local mullas are opposing to the TTP on the ground in their particular theological and militant style of Jihad. These include:

1. Nabi Ustad (An independent commander, now close to Gul Bahadar group): He is the man who openly opposed to Tufan Mullah, as the former’s close associate, Commander Shah Nawaz was brutally killed by the TTP. He claimed responsibility for killing former provincial minister Ghani Urehman in Hangu, who was allegedly involved in the murder of Shah Nawaz in one way or the other. Nabi belongs to Ali Khel sub-tribe of Orakzai. He now operates in lower Kurram and North Waziristan.

2. Mehboob Mullah is the head of Ansarul Islam in Tirh valley. He is the man who resisted Mangal Bagh in Khyber Agency. Mehboob has also theological differences with the TTP. He is strong in Tirah valley not allowing Tufan Mullah to enter Khyber Agency, which is adjacent to Kurram Agency.

Conclusion:

The study leads to the following few conclusions:

The TTP has become weak in Kurram Agency; however, it still has strong footings in Orakzai. The Taliban have lost over 80 percent area of Kurram Agency. They are enjoying power in some pockets of central Kurram, which are relatively harder to access. However, in Orakzai Agency, the Taliban have control over 70 percent area. From upper Orakzai, they are easily communicating with their counterparts in Khyber Agency.

Mamozai is the major tribe supporting the TTP in Kurram Agency, as about 75 percent TTP leadership in Kurram belongs to this sub-tribe of Orakzai. Hakeemullah Mehsud has married with an Afridi girl of in Mamozai tribe in Kurram Agency.

Social and moral support to the TTP in Kurram and Orakzai Agencies has come to the lowest, but no one can dare to physically oppose to the Taliban due to the fear of suicide attacks and target killing.

The Taliban have also abducted close relatives (son,nephews etc) of some prominent Maliks in the area. Many Maliks have fled to major cities of Pakistan and some have even left the country for Middle East.

Anti-TTP commanders and Mualvis are getting more legitimacy and social support, which is a potential threat to the survival of TTP in Kurram Agency. However, most of the people neither rely on the army nor the Taliban for their security. Interestingly, when Mualvi Mumtaz in Zawa town was besieged by the TTP, he rejected the government offer for any support, implying that the people hesitate to get support from any of the two parties believing the things would further worsen.

The TTP is confined to a narrow strip of central Kurram Agency having no safer place in the agency to flee. Tora Bora is the only option for them, which will push them to Afghanistan.

If the army succeeds to clear central Kurram from the TTP operatives, the organization’s physical communication and logistics in North and South Waziristan with Orakzai, Khyber, Mohmand and Bajaur will get badly affected.

The operation in Orakzai has been intensified, but it can still take long time to be concluded as the army assault is not proving very effective, and the enemy is still in the position to take any initiative or give a tough time to the army.

An uphill task for the army will be the return of IDPs to their homes.