Peshawar, Pakistan — Pakistani soldiers and helicopter gunships enforced a security lockdown Monday in a tribal area where nearly 100 people have died in three days of bloody sectarian clashes, residents said.
Streets were deserted and shops, schools and offices closed down under an indefinite curfew after a weekend of violence that saw rival Sunni and Shiite Muslim tribesmen shooting at each other from across rooftops.
The scale of the unrest has exposed the deep tribal and religious tensions in this mountainous region bordering Afghanistan, where guns and weaponry -- including rocket-launchers and mortars -- are in plentiful supply.
People in Parachinar, the main town in Kurram district where the fighting was concentrated, faced shortages of electricity and drinking water supplies after wires were badly damaged in the shelling.
"The whole of the city looks like a desert," one resident said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the tensions.
"Everywhere is closed, the bazaar is closed -- only the army is moving on the streets."
The final death toll may exceed 100 as dead bodies were still lying in some houses and people could not emerge because of the curfew, a security official told AFP.
"The situation in Parachinar area has improved," chief military spokesman Major General Waheed Arshad said. "There was no fighting this morning and clashes have stopped."
Security forces were on patrol to help the overwhelmed local administration restore peace, he said. As helicopters flew overhead, troops helped evacuate people to safer areas.
Shiites account for 20 percent of Pakistan's 160 million, Sunni-dominated population but are in the majority in Parachinar.
They usually co-exist peacefully, but outbreaks of sectarian violence have claimed more than 4,000 lives across Pakistan since the late 1980s.
Many have been in the tribal areas, where ancient rivalries and traditions of taking revenge have led to frequent -- and often unreported -- attacks on prominent leaders as well as random victims.
Security officials said 92 people had been killed since the clashes broke out Friday, with nearly 200 wounded. They include 11 soldiers who were killed in the cross-fire.
"Security forces have been targeted by both sides," the military said in a statement.
Residents said at least 35 bodies had been buried in Parachinar during an early morning lull Monday, after sporadic gunfire overnight.
Residents said the army was using loudspeakers to urge fighters to lay down their weapons, and for people to remain calm.
The latest outbreak of violence came after fighters from the mainly Sunni Mengal tribe allegedly fired on a passenger vehicle, killing two people.
A grenade was then hurled into Parachinar's bazaar, leaving two dead and sending existing tensions with the Shiite-dominated Turi tribe into outright violence.
The curfew, imposed Friday, was ignored as both sides fought with mortars, rocket-propelled grenades, Kalashnikovs and other weaponry from perches on the hillsides and rooftops.
In April, some 55 people were killed in clashes in Parachinar, which has a population of around 70,000, and fighting last year between militants over a shrine left 20 dead.
Meanwhile heavy weapons fire was heard overnight in nearby towns although there were no immediate reports of casualties.
"We spent a sleepless night. I counted at least 80 shells exploding," one resident in the town of Balashkhel said, requesting anonymity.