At least 50 people were killed and 25 others injured yesterday in a gunfight between two Pakistani tribes over disputed mountain territory close to the Afghan, officials and local sources said. A security source told AFP that the Mada Khel and Paipali Kabul Khel tribes of North Waziristan had been engaged in intense fighting since Friday to try to capture a mountain, which both groups claim. An official informed that the fight for occupation of the mountain was still ongoing, when report last came in.
Locals in the area confirmed the violence and said that the tribes support separate militant groups in the region. Another source, who is close to the political administration in the area, gave a lower toll, saying that 36 people were killed and 15 were injured. North Waziristan is one of Pakistan’s seven sem iautonomous tribal districts where Pakistani forces have little control and militant groups thrive. United States has in past branded these areas the most dangerous in the world, saying they are hubs for Taliban and al-Qaeda-led militants.