WORLD NEWS | Pakistan: Tolkham border protests end after tribal members negotiate with officials

Khyber [Pakistan], March 17 (ANI): Traffic in and out of Tolha was closed for hours as members of the Khugakhel tribe in Randikotar district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province protested against the construction of a customs terminal on its border. Vehicle traffic in Mu has resumed. The land was added without their formal consent, Dawn reported.

Agitated Khugakhel tribal members agreed to open the road, which was closed at the Torkham bypass in Landi Kotal after a series of talks between their negotiating team and relevant officials.

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Dawn reported that they managed to persuade the National Logistics Group authorities to suspend work at the terminal until a solution was found to address their objections to the acquisition of additional land without their consent.

However, sources among the protesters revealed to Dawn that “weak” attendance at the bypass protest camp forced Khugakhel elders to reopen the road.

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They said some of their elders were looking for “face” and wanted an end to the protests, as they expected a loss of interest from ordinary tribal members, already hit hard by rising prices for essential everyday items and food.

However, Mufti Ejaz, the self-styled leader of the negotiating team, insisted they would not back down from their real demands. He said that if the relevant authorities did not fulfill their promise to address their grievances, they would hold protests.

Earlier in the day, hundreds of fully loaded vehicles were stopped when members of the Khugakhel tribe suddenly blocked the road. Many transporters said they did not anticipate the road closures, as tribal members simply threatened to stop work at the terminal.

The Khuga Khel tribe in the Landi Kotar district of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province had threatened to commit suicide if their reservations about excessive land expropriation were not taken into account, the Dawn newspaper reported earlier this week. Stop building Customs Docks at Tollham Borders.

Dozens of tribal members staged a protest in Bacha Khan Chowk on Sunday and held up slogans against the alleged seizure of their collective land by the National Logistics Cell (NLC) beyond their land expropriation agreement with the Federal Revenue Service, according to news reports.

Protesters claim that despite repeated protests, the National Logistics Cell (NLC) has illegally seized hundreds of canal lands.

According to the “Dawn” report, they emphasized that proper legal procedures should be followed for land acquisition and due compensation should be given to the owners. (Arnie)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)