At least four and as many as 25 people were killed and four houses demolished in an armed clash between two rival groups of Khyber Agency on Sunday. One of the groups, Lashkar-e-Islami, claimed to have killed several people from the rival Ansarul Islam group. The Lashkar said it had also destroyed the house of Ansarul Islam leader Maulana Mastameen. Mastameen said that his house had been destroyed, but denied that his group had suffered any casualties. “We retaliated successfully and killed four of the attackers,” he said, adding that his group also held a rival hostage. He said that his group had demolished the houses of three people from the Lashkar-e-Islami. The fighting reportedly took place in Kamarkhel, housing an army camp, close to the Pakistan-Afghan border. SANA adds: A government official said on condition of anonymity that at least 25 people had been killed in the clash. He said that he could not give the exact death toll because it was difficult to access the area because of heavy snowfall. Firing started between the two groups on Saturday when one of them opened fired at the security pickets of the other. The gunbattle was continuing till Sunday evening. Local sources said that several people had been killed from both groups. The local political administration and the FATA Secretariat refused to comment.