2 Killed In Pakistan's Kurram As Militants Ambush Trucks Carrying Aid For Sectarian Violence Victims

Gunmen in Pakistan ambushed a convoy of trucks carrying food and medical supplies to residents trapped by sectarian violence. This was the third such attack in Kurram district.

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Source : ABPLIVE AI

Gunmen in northwestern Pakistan killed a driver and a security official on Monday when they ambushed a convoy of trucks carrying food, medicine and other supplies for thousands of residents trapped by sectarian violence, authorities said, as reported by Associated Press.

The attack occurred at multiple locations along the route, including Bagan, Ochit, Mandori, Dad Kamar, and Char Khel, prompting officials to turn the convoy of 64 vehicles back to Hangu as a precautionary measure, police said. As per the details, this was the third such attack in Kurram, a district in the restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The police officials said that the attack happened when the trucks were heading to Parachinar, the main city in Kurram. According to the local administration, the police had launched an operation to nab the perpetrators of the attack. The authorities also said that some of the aid trucks were looted and burned by the attackers.

Last month, at least six people were killed when a rocket attack on an aid convoy in Kurram district. The attack took place on January 16 after a convoy of 35 vehicles carrying food and medical supplies to Kurram was hit with rockets and automatic weapons. After the attack, the assailants also burnt some of the vehicles carrying the relief material from Thall to Parachinar in the Bagan Bazar area of the district. According to initial reports by officials, a Pakistani soldier died in the attack and six attackers were killed in retaliatory action.

In last year's November, a clash between between Alizai and Bagan tribes in the Kurram district killed over 100 after an attack on a convoy of passenger vans near Parachinar.

Sectarian clashes between Shia and Sunni tribes have claimed at least 130 lives since November last year, with food and medicine shortages reported due to weeks-long road blockades in the region. A peace agreement was reached in January, but the route connecting Parachinar remained blocked.  Under the agreement, residents pledged to surrender their weapons to the government in different phases within 15 days, while the dismantling of local bunkers is set to be completed by the end of February.