Jirga resolves to raise ‘drone deaths’ in KP Assembly

“• CM-led gathering terms civilian casualties from terrorism, drone strikes ‘unacceptable’ • KP cabinet to discuss issue tomorrow, followed by grand tribal jirga on Saturday PESHAWAR: As civilians bear the brunt of drone attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s merged districts, a meeting of lawmakers from the respective districts decided on Tuesday that the issue would be taken up in the provincial assembly, while vowing to put up a joint front to protect civilians. The decision was taken as lawmakers from across the merged districts convened at the CM House for a special meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, to discuss the security situation in the province amid an uptick in drone strikes. The Jirga was organised by the CM following a drone strike in his native Khyber district, which claimed the life of a minor girl and injured six members of a family a day earlier. The family of the slain girl held a protest in Peshawar near the Hayatabad toll plaza, and were dispersed by violent police action. According to a statement issued after the jirga, it was decided to summon a special session of the provincial assembly on Thursday, followed by a special cabinet meeting on Friday, and a grand tribal jirga on Saturday to discuss the issue. The participants declared the civilian casualties from both terrorism and drone strikes were unacceptable, saying the people from tribal areas were paying a “double price”. “Neither terrorism nor civilian deaths in drone strikes are acceptable,” they said, according to a statement issued by the CM’s media office. The participants also demanded an end to this cycle of violence, saying tribal districts could not be subjected to a condition in which they were simultaneously victims of militant violence and collateral damage from operations. They also took exception to the classification of civilian casualties as “mistakes,” questioning why these so-called mistakes persistently occurred in populated areas, a participant of the meeting told Dawn on condition of anonymity. The Jirga also questioned intelligence verification standards and the adequacy of safeguards intended to protect non-combatants, saying repeated incidents pointed to systemic deficiencies rather than isolated errors. “Despite modern technology, continuous mistakes resulting in civilian martyrdom are not acceptable under any circumstances,” a CM Office statement said, adding that apologies could not compensate for lives since the losses were irreparable. During the meeting, CM Afridi said the province could not afford further unrest, urging the decision-makers to “understand that the blood of the people is not cheap”. He said Rs 26 billion were provided to the Counter-Terrorism Department and the Special Branch this year to strengthen provincial counter-terrorism capabilities. He also cancelled his visit to Lahore. According to the participants, the protection of civilian life must be non-negotiable and any framework that would put civilians in harm’s way was unacceptable, the insider told Dawn. The lawmakers also agreed on the need to adopt a unified strategy irrespective of political affiliation, saying individual stances had not yielded results in the past. They also reiterated that the deaths due to drone attacks could not be compensated through financial packages and that preventing such incidents must be the foremost priority of the state. Published in Dawn, April 29th, 2026

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