Rival sectarian groups agree to seven-day ceasefire in Pakistan

Local Sunni and Shia armed groups have clashed for decades, but the most recent fighting has killed more than 30 people. Pakistani officials have announced a seven-day truce between rival sectarian groups after days of clashes killed dozens of people in the northwest of the country. Following the violence, Muhammad Ali Saif, spokesperson for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial government and a member of the mediation team, said on Sunday that both sides had agreed to a seven-day ceasefire. The mediation team flew into Parachinar, Kurram’s main city, on Saturday and met with Shia and Sunni leaders while the district was under a virtual curfew with armed groups roaming the streets in many villages. Sectarian violence Last month, at least 16 people were killed in Kurram, including three women and two children, due to clashes between the two armed groups.