PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Clashes between armed Sunni and Shiite factions in northwestern Pakistan have resulted in the deaths of at least 33 individuals and left 25 others injured, as reported by a senior police official in the area on Saturday.

The violence, which unfolded overnight, marks the latest incident to disrupt Kurram, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. This escalation follows a recent gun ambush that claimed the lives of 42 people just days earlier.

In Pakistan, where Sunni Muslims account for the majority, approximately 15% of the population identifies as Shiite within the country’s 240 million residents. Over the years, this demographic has been embroiled in a history of sectarian conflict, though, in many areas, Sunnis and Shiites coexist peacefully. However, the Kurram district has continued to experience heightened tensions over time.

According to the police official, who wished to remain anonymous, armed groups in the areas of Bagan and Bacha Kot set fire to shops, homes, and government buildings amid ongoing skirmishes between the Alizai and Bagan tribes in Lower Kurram.

“The educational facilities in Kurram are shut down due to the escalating conflict. Both factions are engaging each other using heavy and automatic weaponry,” the police officer stated.

Footage circulated on social media depicted a market consumed by flames, with the sounds of gunfire echoing in the background. The location had already been targeted in a previous attack on Thursday when armed individuals stormed the area.

Survivors of the earlier attack described how assailants emerged from a vehicle and opened fire on buses and cars. As of now, no group has claimed responsibility for this assault, and the police have yet to determine an underlying motive for these attacks.

Since July, numerous individuals from both the Sunni and Shiite communities within the Kurram district have lost their lives, following the onset of a land dispute that spiraled into widespread sectarian violence.