TIRAH

mountainous tract in west-central North-West Frontier province, Pakistan. It lies on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border between the Khyber Pass and Khanki Valley, northwest of Kohat town. It is inhabited mainly by Afridi and Orakzay Pashtun tribes. Tirah comprises a rugged area of 600700 square miles (1,5501,800 square km), watered by the Mastura (one of the main tributaries of the Bara River), the Khanki, and the Khurmana rivers, all of which rise within a few miles of Mount Mitta (12,470 feet ) in the Spin Range. At Mount Mitta the Spin Range splits into several branches between which lie the valleys of Tirah at elevations of 5,0007,000 feet (1,5002,100 m). Tirah was the scene of the campaign (189798) in which the Afridi rose in a jihad (holy war) against the British, captured the Khyber posts, and attacked forts near Peshawar. In the hardest campaign since the Second Afghan War, 40,000 British and Indian troops were sent to Tirah. The main body of troops stormed Dargai, overran all of Tirah, and retook the Khyber posts without opposition.