Pir Samiullah gujjar khatana

Pir Samiullah gujjar khatana was the first tribal leader in Swat to raise a lashkar, or tribal army, to oppose the Taliban. He claimed to have organized more than 10,000 tribesmen to oppose the Taliban and protect 20 villages. Samiullah and his followers are members of the Gujjar community, which is a group distinct from the dominant Pashtun tribal confederations that support the Taliban.

Pir was rival tribal and religious leader opposing Mullah Fazlullah's forces in the Matta region of Swat. Pir and eight of his followers were killed in a Taliban assault on Dec. 16 2008. Two of his aides were subsequently beheaded in public, while an estimated 40 of his followers have been captured. The Taliban also torched the houses of Samiullah and 15 elders of his group.