Jani Khel, Bannu: Bodies of four hunting boys recovered, locals sit-in and police investigation continues
"These four young boys went hunting, but it is not known where they went. Now, about twenty days later, the bodies of the four have been found.
These are the words of the uncle of a slain boy, Ahmadullah, who was sitting with the bodies.
The incident took place in Jani Khel area of Bannu district and the protest sit-in continued on Monday near Jani Khel Road near the fort.
Police said they have registered a case of murder against unknown persons, but the number of people in protest and demanded that the government should identify those who killed those boys.
Ahmed's uncle Dr Subhan Wali, who took part in the sit-in, told the BBC that his sit-in would continue until his demands were met.
The sit-in has been going on since last night (Sunday). He said the government should "identify the killers, arrest and punish them and ask those responsible for security, as there are checkpoints near where the bodies were found."
"Everyone in the area is saddened by the incident and that is why everyone is participating in the sit-in," he said.
'Four murdered bodies found buried in the ground'
According to police, the four boys were said to be between 13 and 17 years old and their bodies were found in a graveyard near a river in Jani Khel area.
The boys were identified as Ahmadullah Khan, Mohammad Rahim, Rafamullah and Atifullah
Ahmadullah's uncle, Subhan Wali, told the BBC that the four boys had gone hunting and had dogs with them. But the boys did not return home. The boys' relatives and locals searched for them but could not find them.
He said that when a herdsman took cattle to the area yesterday, stray dogs spotted the bodies in the ground and the people of the area were informed about it. The families of the victims and other locals rushed to the spot and identified the bodies.
He said he had "no enmity with anyone and did not know who killed the boys", so he called on the government to bring the killers to justice.
Locals said the boys were fond of hunting and playing local games.
People said that these boys often went hunting for birds and rabbits.
It is learned that the father of one of the boys works in Karachi and the father of two works locally. One of the fathers has died and one of his brothers is working abroad.
Local police officials said they received a report that locals had found four dead bodies buried in a cemetery in the area.
According to police, "one body is missing" and "the rest cannot be identified."
An FIR has been lodged with the police by Ahmadullah's uncle stating that he has no enmity with anyone and so far they have not been able to find out who killed the boys.
"This bloodbath in our area must stop now."
Bannu District is located on the border of the merging tribal areas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province. Jani Khel is located about 25 km from Bannu city and shares a border with North Waziristan.
Locals say the term "good and bad extremists" is common in the area.
According to him, good extremists are those who are 'with the government' while bad extremists are said to be 'against the government', it is like 'good Taliban and bad Taliban'.
Locals in Jani Khel say violence in the area has been going on for some time and they complain that the authorities are not paying attention.
Dr. Subhan Wali, the uncle of the slain boy Ahmed, said, "Now this bloodbath should stop."
He said that for the last ten years, there have been reports of murders on a daily basis but now the killing of these four innocent children has spread havoc in the entire region.
He said that every person in Jani Khel is sad and there are tears in the eyes of every human being, which is why "people from all over the region have arrived" in this protest.
Four women working for an NGO and teaching local women various skills were shot dead in North Waziristan in February this year.
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