"External forces" are taking part in the tribal clashes in the Kurram Agency of Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur said, ARY News reported on February 19.

According to the head of the government, these forces are not just participating in the direct conflict, but are providing militants with weapons and ammunition as well.

Recall that the unrest in Kurram Agency has been ongoing since September 2024. During this time, the agency has experienced several flare-ups of conflict between local Shia and Sunni groups, who have been arguing for decades over land ownership and the possibility to settle in various areas of Kurram.

From October to January, all access roads to Upper Kurram were blocked due to active clashes. As a result, the area with a population of more than half a million people was completely blocked so that delivery of food, medicine, and fuel was impossible.

It should be noted that Kurram is located on the border with Afghanistan in the former Pashtun Tribal Area.