The Kurram River drains the southern flanks of the Safed Koh mountain range, and enters the Indus plains north of Bannu. It crosses the Afghan-Pakistan border about 80 km southwest of Jalalabad, and joins the Indus near Isa Khel after a course of more than 320 km (200 miles). The district has an area of 3,310 km² (1,278 sq. miles); the population according to the 1998 census was 448,310. It lies between the Miranzai Valley and the Afghan border, and is inhabited by the Bangash,Mangal para-Chamkani, orakzai and Turis, a tribe of Turki and Pathan origin. The language of the tribes is Pashto, the majority of the people is sunni but a minute number of Shia community are inhabited too